
THE 



QDERNPROl 



A SERIES 

OF PRACTICAL TALKS TO 

YOUNG PEOPLE, 



BY REV, LEN, G BROUGHTON, M.D, 




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LIBRARY OF CONGRESS. 

Chap.. Copyright Xo..]^.__ . 

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UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 



The Modern Prodigal. 



A Series of Practical Talks to Young People. 



BY 

REV. LEN. G. BROUGHTON, M.D. 

Pastor Tabernacle Baptist Church, Atlanta, Ga. 

Author of "Talks on Home," 

and other books. 



"My son, attend unto my wisdom and bow thine ear to my understanding; that 
thou mayest regard discretion, and thy lips may keep knowledge." Solomon. 



ATLANTA, GA.: 

THE FOOTE & DAVIES COMPANY. 

Printers and Binders. 







45092 

Copyright, 1899, 
By Len. G. Broughton, M.D. 

TWO COPIES RECEIVED. 







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The Library 

OF CONTHi, >s*$ 



WASHfW^-TfvM 



PREFACE. 



The eight chapters of this little book will, 1 trust, 
cause some young life to think seriously upon the dan- 
ger-points along the way. Temptation, especially to 
the young, is hard to resist unless they are strongly 
fortified. Many a young life has gone down to ruin 
because of a lack of practical training concerning the 
dangers along life's journey. This book, therefore, is 
to aid in giving such training. 

The hero in our study is the "prodigal son." His 
life is so full of warning that we have endeavored to 
reduce it to present-day experience, handling such evils 
as most likely contribute to the destruction of the 
young in our own time. 

Len. G. Broughtox. 



To 

YOUNG PEOPLE 

This little volume is affectionately dedicated by 

their friend and well-wisher, 

The Author. 



CONTENTS. 



The Young Man's Life — 

Making Most of Time ............ g 

The Young Man at Home — 

A Start in Life e 17 

Out in the World — 

Wandering in Sin ........ c * . « 33 

In the Gutter — 

Overcome with Evil f 49 

The Young Man Thinking — 

The Hopeful Sign ..,..-.. 63 

The Young Man Returning — 

Resolution in Action .......<.. 75 

At Home at Last — 

A Father's Gracious Smiles ..-,.«... 91 

The Young Man Who Stayed at Home — 

Whiners and Whining .......... 105 



The Young Man's Life-, 

OR, 

MAKING MOST OF TIME. 



CHAPTER I. 
THE YOUNG MAN'S LIFE; 

OR, 

MAKING MOST OF TIME 

It is astonishing what a boy can do when once he has 
made up his mind to do his best. 

Not long after I entered the ministry, I went to a 
certain town to hold a series of meetings. It was one 
of these good old Southern towns, the inhabitants of 
which banked on aristocracy and fed their souls upon 
the glory of departed days. ' They had never known 
what it w r as to be spiritually warm. The first night I 
was there I preached to a great audience. It was in 
my early ministry, when I made many propositions. 
The first one I made that night was for any one to 
stand who wanted prayers offered for their friends. 
As soon as I made it a little boy got up and walked out 
in the aisle, where he stood looking me square in the 
face. I said, "God bless you, little man," and he sat 
down. I then asked any one who wanted the prayers 
of God's people to rise. That boy got out in the aisle 
again and looked me in the face, and again I said, "God 
bless you." I asked if there was anybody present who 
was willing to accept Jesus. That boy stood up again 
and looked me in the face, and again I said, "God bless 



12 THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 

you." Nobody else stood up that night, and I began to 
think I had struck about the hardest and coldest crowd 
I had ever run up against. 

The next night I preached as hard as I knew how to 
sinners, and when I finished, I asked anybody who 
wanted to be prayed for to stand up. That same little 
rascal popped out into the aisle as he had done the 
night before and stood looking at me till I saw him and 
said, "God bless you." I thought I'd vary the thing a 
little, so I asked if anybody present was willing to 
come forward and give me his hand as an indication 
that he would accept Jesus. That same boy came 
shuffling out of his seat, straight down the aisle 
and gave me his hand. I saw smiles on the faces 
of some in the congregation. Nobody but the boy 
showed any interest, and I went off somewhat disheart- 
ened. The third night I preached, and when I asked 
all who wanted prayer to rise, that boy popped out in 
the aisle. The people had begun to regard it as a joke, 
and they nudged each other with their elbows, while a 
broad smile flared from one side of the house to the 
other. When I asked anybody who was willing to ac- 
cept Jesus to come and give me their hand, that boy 
came, and the congregation smiled broader than be- 
fore, and some actually tittered. After the meeting 
the deacons came to me and told me that the boy. must 
be stopped, as he was a half-idiot, and was throwing a 
damper on the meeting. I said : "Stop nothing! How 
are you going to throw a damper on an ice-house ?" 
For the whole of that week the boy was the only per- 



THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 13 

son in the house who showed any interest in the meet- 
ing. Then he wanted to join the church. The pastor 
was absent, and I was to open the doors of the church. 
The deacons came to me and said I must not receive 
that boy, as he didn't have sense enough to join the 
church. I said : "Look here, brethren, I won't take 
this responsibility on my hands. I'm going to put that 
boy on you, and if you choose to reject him, his blood 
be upon your hands." At the conclusion of the morn- 
ing service, I invited all who desired to unite with the 
church to come forward. That boy came. I asked 
him if he had accepted Christ for his personal Savior. 
That's all I ever ask. He said he had. "Brethren," 
said I, "you hear what this boy has to say. What will 
you do with him?" An ominous silence fell on the 
congregation. After a time, from way back by the 
door I heard a muffled and rather surly "I move he be 
received." Another painful silence followed, and then 
from the middle of the church I heard a muffled "I 
second the motion." When I put the motion, about 
half a dozen members voted "aye" in a tone so low that 
it seemed as if they were scared. I gave the boy the 
right hand of Christian welcome awaiting baptism, and 
then dismissed the congregation. 

The next day the boy went out to see his old grand- 
father, a man whose whitened head was blossoming for 
the grave, and whose feet were taking hold upon the 
shifting sands of eternity. "Grandfather," said he, 
"won't you go to church with me to-night and hear that 
preacher ?" We always feel kindly towards those who 



14 THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 

are afflicted, you know, and are willing to please them; 
so the old man agreed to go. 

That night I saw the boy and the old man sitting 
away back near the door. When the sermon was fin- 
ished, one of the members of the church arose and said : 
"I have a request to make. We have with us to-night 
Mr. Blank, one of our oldest and most respected citi- 
zens, but he is out of Christ. I want special prayer of- 
fered for this my special friend." With that he laid 
his hand upon the head of the old man, down whose 
furrowed cheeks the tears were streaming. The next 
night I saw the old man sitting about half-way down 
the aisle. When all who wanted to accept Jesus were 
invited to come forward and give me their hand, I saw 
the half-idiot boy coming down the aisle leading the 
old man by the hand. 

That little boy's father kept a saloon. The follow- 
ing day the child went there, and climbing up over the 
high counter, he peeped down upon his father and said : 
"Papa, won't you go to church with me to-night 
to hear that preacher?" "You get out of here, child, 
go out of here," said the father; "don't you know you 
musn't come in here?" Strange, strange, how fathers 
will keep places into which their children can not go. 

"But, papa," continued the bov, "won't you go to 
church with me to-night?" "Yes, I'll go, but you get 
out of here." 

That night the man came with the half-idiot boy and 
sat about where the old man had sat the night before. 
When I asked all who would accept Christ to come for- 



THE MODERX PRODIGAL. 15 

ward, he walked down the aisle and gave me his hand. 
He asked if he could make a statement, and when I said 
"yes," he faced the congregation and said: "My 
friends, you all know me, and I want to say that so long 
as I live I will never sell another drop of whisky, for I 
have given my heart to God to-night, and from this day 
forward I propose to serve him." The meeting- 
warmed up at last, the town was set on fire for God, 
every saloon-keeper was converted and every saloon in 
town was closed. The feeling spread and a saloon 
seven miles in the country was closed and the keeper 
was converted to God. 

At the close of the meeting I sat on the front seat and 
saw the pastor lead three generations into the baptismal 
waters, the old man in front, his son behind him, and 
last in line the little half-idiot boy. The only mistake 
that was made, to my mind, was that the boy who had 
led the others to Christ should not have been first in 
the line. Where is the little half-idiot boy now? He 
has grown much brighter within the last few years and 
is now going to school. He says he wants to be and 
will be a missionary. Oh, my friends, my heart thrills 
within me to think that, off yonder in some dark conti- 
nent, there are heathen souls who are waiting for the 
sound of the voice of. that half-idiot boy to proclaim 
to them the glad things of salvation and to send a 
stream of light within their benighted lives. 

What a lesson to the young to-day. Let us learn it. 
Persistent, self-surrender, ever doing the best zee can, 
is a never-failing way that leads to victory. 



THE YOUNG MAN AT HOME; 

OR, 

STARTING IN LIFE. 



"And he said, A certain man had two sons : And the younger of them 
said to his father, Father, give me the portion of goods that falleth to 
me. And he divided unto them his living. "—Luke xv: 11, 12. 



CHAPTER II. 
THE YOUNG MAN AT HOME; 

OR, 

STARTING IX LIKE. 

There are many lessons to be learned from a careful 
study of the prodigal son — the fatherhood of God — 
the brotherhood of man — man's proneness to sin and 
stray away from God; the nature and consequences 
of sin — return to God a voluntary act, and God's will- 
ingness to forgive. These points will all consume a 
portion of our consideration as we proceed in the dis- 
cussion which shall follow in the course of our series. 
We will consider him at 

HIS HOME. 

There is no questioning the fact that in the majority 
of instances a boy's home life marks his future conduct. 
But when I say "home life" I do not mean the amount 
of money in his home. Oh, we so often confound the 
word home with something material. A boy's home 
is not made up of money; it is not made up of houses 
and lands. A boy's home is something grander than 
these; it is something indestructible; it is that which 
will stand misfortunes and reverses; it is a moral and 
spiritual edifice. Well might the Italian sing — 



20 THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 

"My home, my home is love; 

There is nothing that can tell it." 

There was a mighty truth spoken by a little waif 
on the streets of a certain city one morning as he met a 
handsomely-dressed gentleman, and began talking to 
him about his home. Said he: "Mister, I've got the 
finest home you ever seen, if I am in rags myself." 
"Your home?" said the man. "Yes, sir, my home." 
"Where is your home?" Just at that time he saw com- 
ing around the corner a poor old woman, with a bundle 
of clothes upon her head, and, pointing toward her, he 
said: "There it is, mister." Yes, many of us can appre- 
ciate his words. When I go to the city of Raleigh, N. 
C, I always want to visit my old home ; but where do I 
go? Not to the old house. 'Tis true, there are many 
things which could interest me there: the old play- 
ground, where I used to sail kites and play marbles and 
jump the rope. But I don't go there to find my home 
— oh, no! I go over to beautiful green Oakwood, and 
I ramble around among the cedars and the marble 
slabs, till I come to a little mound beneath which lies 
the grandest mansion that was ever erected by hands 
divine — the spot where dear mother lies. So a boy's 
home does not consist of houses and lands, but a 
mothers love and a father's protecting care. 

May we not, then, conclude that much of the failure 
on the part of our young men is due to false training in 
the home? May it not be that the reason why much of the 
£-ood learned in life, in the school-room and church, is 



THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 21 

lost because the home does not back up such lessons? 
Let me then appeal to you, fathers and mothers. Study 
well this matter. It is an awful mistake to make. Try 
to help me as I shall try to help your boys. 

It is not always true, however, that a bad or unsuc- 
cessful boy has had bad training. Doubtless it was not 
true in the case of the prodigal. He may have had the 
very best. Some boys, it seems, are predestined to be 
bad, and no power seems to be able to prevent it. And 
it is no excuse for a young man that he was not trained 
properly, for boys become men, and men are to know 
right from wrong and to act for themselves. 

What, in my judgment, causes so much failure on 
the part of young men is a false conception of life in 
the start. 

First. — This is shown in a crazy disposition on their 
part to get away from home and home influences. This 
was true of the young prodigal. He was restless and 
unsettled; wanted to get away from home and home 
influences; could not stand the restraints of his father, 
the earnest pleadings of his mother. There was too 
much sameness about his life. He could see other 
young men having a good time in the world, and why 
not enjoy some of the fun? 

THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 

How much like him are many of our boys ! I know 
what I am talking about; I've been a boy. The fact is, 
I have not long since left your present sphere. I am 



22 THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 

going to talk plain to you, then, boys. Not that I de- 
light in criticizing you, but to help you. 

The modern prodigal — how numerous! He wants 
to get away from the old folks; get away from 
home. There are many reasons prompting him in 
his desire to flee from home. There is not as much 
liberty as he wants and, he thinks, as he deserves. He 
looks around him and sees that other boys have free- 
dom. They are not tied to "mother's apron-string." 
They stay upon the streets day and night. They are 
not forced to come home and give an account as to 
where they have been. They don't have to go to 
church and hear a long sermon, or to attend Sunday- 
school. But with him it is the reverse. He has to go 
to church and Sunday-school; cannot be allowed late 
hours upon the streets; somebody is always watching 
him, and he concludes that he can't stand it. 

Besides, there is too much restraint upon his bodily 
indulgences. He opens his big Solomon eyes and 
sees no harm in this and that thing. There is, to him, 
no harm in visiting the opera and looking hours upon 
half-dressed men and women. Oh, no; that's not any 
harm! Mother and father objects, but that is "old 
folks' fogishness." There is, to him, not the slightest 
harm in dancing the german. Oh, no; it gives grace 
to one's carriage. No harm at all in clasping his arms 
around the waist of a young lady, provided it is in a 
ballroom. True, mother and father tell him that it is, 
but a breeze which fans many times into a flame ani- 
mal passion to such an extent that ruin is the inevitable 



THE MODERN PRODIGAL, 23 

consequence. But that is kk old folks 7 fogishness." He 
sees no harm in playing a game of cards, for fun, in the 
parlor with a young lady ; certainly not ; it passes away 
the time so pleasantly. The "old folks" say its wrong. 
They say it may lead to ruin, but they don't know ; we 
boys are presumed to know some things. And then 
occasionally he wants to smoke a cigarette. The cig- 
arette, as you know^, is a necessary concomitant of the 
dude, and he sees no harm in it; other boys do it; it 
don't hurt them. On the other hand, it looks nice and 
"sporty" for a boy to smoke gracefully a cigarette. 
? Tis true again, mother and father and the family doc- 
tor tell him that one great cause for the rapid spread of 
consumption today is the inhalation of the hot, poison- 
ous fumes of the cigarette. 

A SAD DEATH SCENE. 

Ah, young men, hear me upon this point. Many a 
young man today in this city is a wreck, mentally and 
physically, because of this awful habit. I shall never 
forget a death scene I witnessed once. It was caused 
by cigarettes. He was a bright young man and had a 
good future. He formed the habit of smoking cigar- 
ettes, and, like all of the others, he inhaled the smoke. 
He continued this for several years. His lungs were 
not strong. After awhile, a cough developed. A 
physician was called. His lung tissue was beginning 
to give way. His eyes were swollen from the arsenic 
in wdiich the paper was bleached. The doctor told 



24 THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 

him to quit, but he could not; it had gone too far. Like 
a man chained to a post, he was chained fast to. this 
mighty evil. Finally, he gave up, and I shall never 
forget his confession on his deathbed. Said he: "Doc- 
tor, I am a murderer; I have taken my own life, and am 
afraid I cannot get pardon." Oh, young men, this is a 
mighty evil. I wish I could impress you with it as it 
is. I beg you, young man, as one who knows its dan- 
gers, lay down that death-germ you hold in your hand. 
Flee from it, or it will be your ruin. Great God, help 
them as they try to let the habit go, and speed the day 
when those who deal in them, from the seller to the 
manufacturer, shall be branded as highway murderers. 
Liberty! Liberty! Oh, what of its fruits! Go into 
our big cities today. Let me show you those great in- 
stitutions, with rooms filled with young men ; the vile, 
slimy germs of death eating out their lives. Take 
care, young men, lest as you plunge into what you call 
fun and innocent pleasure you do not pay its awful pen- 
alty. Take care that, as you hunt for liberty, you do 
not find a prison. 

THE CURSE OF THE DAY. 

Second. — This false conception of life is seen in the 
extravagant manner in which young men spend what 
they get. 

It has been said, extravagance is the curse of the 
age. I believe it is true. Largely what a young man 
is by twenty-five at least he is for life. 



THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 25 

Edison was famous for his inventions when twenty- 
three. 

Bacon was a member of Parliament at twenty-three ; 
at twenty-six, one of its leaders. 

Hayne, when twenty-two, had the best paying law 
practice in South Carolina. 

Poe was. a poet at sixteen; at twenty-four he wrote 
"The Raven.'' 

Bryant wrote poetry at nine; at eighteen, his master- 
piece, "Thanatopsis," was published. 

Choate entered college at sixteen; began practicing 
law at twenty-four. 

Longfellow's first poetry was published at thirteen. 

Shakespeare left school at fourteen ; Clay at fourteen ; 
John Bright at fifteen. 

Scott entered the fair realm of literature at twenty- 
five. 

Byron's first poems appeared at nineteen ; at twenty- 
four, he reached the highest pinnacle of his literary 
fame. 

Wilberforce entered Parliament at twenty-one. 

William of Orange commanded the army on the 
French frontier at twenty-two. 

Napoleon, at twentv-seven, commanded the armv in 
Italy. 

Hamilton began his public career at seventeen; at 
twenty-seven, was one of the best-known lawyers and 
statesmen of his day. 

So I say a young man's habits are usually pretty well 
established by the time he is twenty-five. If then he 



26 THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 

should be extravagant till that age, he may expect to 
be extravagant for life. 

I believe this is the solution of the hard-times prob- 
lem. Probably no such times have ever been experi- 
enced as the present. Many theories have been ad- 
vanced as to its cause. Bad legislation on the part of 
State and nation has been accused. It may be, and 
doubtless is, partly responsible. Good legislation may 
tend to remedy things. But as I see it, extravagance 
is the fundamental cause for all our trouble along this 
line. Extravagance in the individual and in the na- 
tion. More money going out than is coming in. 
Young men share their part of the blame. A young 
man today thinks that about the highest achievement 
in life is to so live as to gain for himself, by his money 
or otherwise, the title of "society man." It makes no 
special difference what it cost. Girls are largely re- 
sponsible for such a sad state of society. Only the 
other day at a very prominent watering place in our 
State I overheard two young ladies talking about a cer- 
tain young man who lived in their town. One of the 
girls remarked, "Oh, he is awful nice; no better boy in 
town; prominent in church; a thorough business boy; 
saves his money, and, in fact, he's perfection. But 
you know we girls can't associate with him in company 
because he's not a 'society boy.' " What did she 
mean? She meant that he didn't throw his money 
away buying spike-tail coats and big-leg trousers ; that 
he did not visit the german, the opera, the card table 
and the saloon. Yes, it meant that he was a man, and, 



THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 27 

as such, possessed enough sense to know the pitfalls 
in the way of the young man. Society! Oh, the folly 
of such a thing! How it has ruined our boys! And 
it is in order to appease the cry of foolish, flippant girls 
that they are led into such life; caused to spend their 
time and money in reckless extravagance, until by the 
time they are old enough to settle down in life they 
have neither health nor wealth. There is many a boy 
in our city who is being led on and on to ruin by this false 
idea of life. There is a young man here who came from 
another city. At home, he was a good boy ; prominent 
in church and in business; never thought of being a 
dude. But when he came to the city he fell in with the 
wrong crowd. He was led off by the society element 
of the city; and today he is a physical, financial and 
moral wreck. God pity any boy who falls in with that 
crow T d. In another city I had a playmate and friend. 
He was thought well of by the town. He was a very 
prominent young man in church; had a good, Godly 
mother. This boy went to another State, received a 
good salary, but unfortunately fell in with the wrong 
crowd. He began the sporting life. Step by step he 
went downward, all the time getting a faster grip upon 
society, until after awhile he came to himself, saw his 
condition, saw an overdrawn account which he could 
not meet. He skipped for the West, but he was 
caught, and tonight he is serving a term of five years 
in the Virginia State prison. Oh, boys, think upon 
these things; they are no "tales;" they are facts. You 
do not think they will be your end, but it is well for you 



28 THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 

to watch. You are not safe so long as you are in this 
road. When I was in a Western city the people were 
very much alarmed one morning at the news of "no 
water." The reservoir was practically dry. What was 
the matter? Why, a secret leak had sprung in its base, 
and though supplied by the Ohio river, yet, because of 
the leak, it was insufficient. So, young man, you may 
convert your business into a regular flowing Pactolus, 
ever depositing its golden sands into your coffers, yet 
through numerous wastes of unfrugal habits you may 
live embarrassed and die in want. 

A FALSE CLAIM. 

Third. — This false idea of life is seen in the exhibition 
of their impudent dependence. It was so with the 
prodigal. Hear his demands; see his consummate 
impudence: "Father" — it is a wonder he said father; 
most of our young men would not have had so much 
respect for him; they would have said "old man" — 
"give me my goods, the portion belonging to me." Im- 
pudence personified. He had no goods. What had 
he done to have a claim upon his father's goods? Why, 
that father ought to have taken him off, given him a 
good "flogging" and then put him to work. That's 
the goods he needed. There is too much sponging 
upon the hard earnings of the old fathers. I know 
healthy young men who "dude" around our streets all 
the week, spin yarns, fight cocks, "root" for baseball- 
ers, play cards and read novels, and think nothing of 



THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 29> 

going to their old fathers Saturday nights and demand- 
ing "spending change." Some of them depend upon 
poor, hard-working mothers for all they get. And yet 
"society" does not frown them down. They are given 
high seats in the society of "Sons of Rest," and the pub- 
lic applaud. Oh, when will these things change? 
When w r ill society be purged? 

THE FAMILY WAGON. 

The other day I was going down the street, and saw r 
a wagon stalded; it was loaded with wood. Hitched 
to it was an old, poor, flap-eared mule, looking like he 
w r as on his way to the bone-yard more than anywhere 
else. On this wagon were two strong, broad-should- 
ered young men. I watched them for awhile. "Get 
up! Get up!" they shouted. "What's you here fur?" 
And then bang! bang! came the lash. "Get up! Get 
up! Get up! What's you here fur?" The tempta- 
tion was too strong. I said: "Boys, get down and give 
him a lift." "None of your business/ 1 they said. And 
I went on. Now, I think I've seen some family 
wagons like this. A poor, old father is hitched. He 
pulls his best, and can just manage to get along. Two 
or three great strapping boys, who ought themselves 
to do the pulling, are always on the wagon. They 
whip and they slash when things get stalded, but never 
think to put their own shoulders to the wheel and help 
carry the load. Oh, young men, be ashamed to 
sponge upon your old fathers! 



30 THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 

THE REAL END OF LIFE. 

Finally, young men, let me impress you with the real 
end of life at the start: it is the glory of God and the 
good of your fellow-men. All other objects fade 
away. Pleasure is but for a season. Money must 
perish, but service to God grows brighter and brighter 
as the years go by. Oh, that you could learn this les- 
son ; learn it while under the home- roof, while starting 
in life. This is the period of most importance to you. 
Much depends upon it. A vessel was coming across 
the waters. A young man was aboard; buckled around 
him was a wreath of precious treasures he had gath- 
ered on his journeys. During the last night of his 
journey, the boiler of the vessel exploded; their ship, 
consequently, was sinking. The passengers began 
leaping, w T ith their life-preservers, out into the angry 
sea. Just as he was preparing to leap, a little girl 
came up and said: "Mister, won't you save me?" He 
thought a moment, pulled off his treasures, threw them 
upon the deck, threw his arms around her, and leaped 
for their lives. The great waves came and rolled them 
ashore, when friends and loved ones shouted and 
leaped for joy. Young men, such is your case. You 
are on a sinking vessel. The period of youth is slip- 
ping away. Stretched out before you is the sea of life. 
There are two great powers claiming your attention — 
the power of pleasure and wealth and the power and 
weight of eternity. Your soul is pleading for salvation 



THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 31 

from the threatening waves of sin. You must decide 
this matter. Oh, heed the pleadings of your soul! 
Unbuckle the wreath of pleasure from around you. 
Buckle on the life-preserver — Jesus Christ. Throw 
around your soul the strong arm of resolute protection 
and leap out in life. And then, though the storms may 
come, yet in the end you will land safely on the other 
shore, where loved ones will meet and greet you. An- 
gels will rejoice, and, above all, God will crown you 
with immortal glory and honor. 



The Young Man in the World; 



OR, 



WANDERING IN SIN. 



"And not many days after, the younger son gathered all together, and 
took his journey into a far country^ and there wasted his substance with 
riotous living."— Luke xv: 13. 



CHAPTER III. 

THE YOUNG MAN IN THE WORLD; 

OR, 

WANDERING IN SIN. 

In our last we left our young hero starting in life. 
The ship of youth and young manhood was being 
launched. At present we take him out on life's proud 
ocean, battling with the breakers. We watch him as 
he sails. 

Unfortunately for poor, sin-depraved man, this life 
is so crowded w T ith sin that go where you will and you 
are confronted with its tempting hand. And man be- 
ing by nature a creature of sin, in his unregenerate 
state cannot help engaging in its folly. Molded in a 
mold which fits nothing but sin, he would not help it 
if he could. Regeneration, fortunately for him, breaks 
up and destroys this sin-mold — recasts it in the foun- 
dry of God's love and infinite mercy, so that it hence- 
forth is suited to truth and righteousness. 

Now, with this unchanged heart and life, our young 
man of tonight ventured out in life. It was a very 
unwise and dangerous step to make, for upon life's sea 
there are so many breakers, so many storm clouds to 
encounter, that no one is safe who is not prepared to 



36 THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 

fasten his anchor beneath the immovable rock Christ 
Jesus. 

But his launching was from the standpoint of the 
"good-time hunter/' grand and glorious. I have seen 
a proud ship just entering for a trip across the sea. 
She had a bright prospect. Her rigging was in hand- 
some trim. Her timbers were stout and strong. Her 
flag was flapping in the gentle summer breezes. Her 
sails were new and bright. Her keel had never expe- 
rienced a single storm. Her captain strutted with 
arrogant pride. O, how grandly, how proudly she 
split the rolling waves and hurled them up on either 
side like mountain ranges in the far-off distance. But 
times were not always so hopeful. She encountered 
a storm. Her strong timbers reeled and cracked. 
Her sails split in fragments. Her captain grew sick 
and heartless, and finally after a hard-fought night suc- 
ceeded in pulling his vessel into an unfriendly shore, 
wrecked and ruined. 

This was our young prodigal. . It was all smiles that 
morning when he proudly stepped out from the old 
home and entered upon life for himself. The sky of 
hope was never so clear to him. The sun of promise 
never shone so brightly. He had his money with 
which he was going to have a good time. He had his 
freedom which he had so long craved. To him this 
was a grand start, an envious beginning. But alas! 
how sad the end! Soon the storm of temptation and 
sin is raging. He is being swayed to and fro. Like 
the handsome rigging upon the proud vessel, his 



THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 37 

youthful expectations are split in tatters. The gaily- 
rigged boat of self-security and self-appreciation is 
-shattered into fragments of ruin, and he lies upon the 
shores of life wrecked and ruined forever. 

THREE CAUSES. 

Now, there are three causes which operate upon his 
life just at this point which we must consider. 

First. — As was mentioned in our last, he had an 
improper conception of the value of money. 

To him money was intended simply to give a man 
a gay time. This was evidenced by the fact that he 
spent his substance in riotous living. Alas! Alas! 
It is too true to say that many of our young men 
regard money as having no higher value than a gay 
time. Two young men come to the city from the same 
community; they obtained good positions; they re- 
ceived the same salaries ; they roomed together. One 
of them decided to lay by a certain portion of his 
money every month; the other strayed off after "a 
good time" — that fiend which has destroyed so many 
noble young men. He frequently laughed at his room- 
mate for his stinginess. But it was not long before 
his stingy bed-fellow had a nice little home with a 
pretty little wife, and was as happy as he could be; 
while the "society dude" was a professional dead beat, 
and no man cared for him. Money, as we have already 
seen, is only valued for the good it can do. Do not 
forget this, it may help you some day. 



38 THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 

BAD COMPANIONS. 

Second. — The wrong kind of companions. There 
is no doubt when he started out with money in his 
pocket and a free heart, and began to spend his money, 
he was at once surrounded by a gang of professional 
dead beats and bums. There are always just such old 
sports to take in a young fellow who knows little about 
the ways of the world. Not long ago I was called to 
the police headquarters on Monday morning. I was 
told that there was a young man there from Lynch- 
burg who wanted to see me. I went inside the jail and 
found an innocent-looking young fellow. He was cry- 
ing. I soon saw 7 he was a novice in that business. I 
was told by an officer the story. He had left home 
and come to our city on Saturday afternoon to accept 
a position which had been tendered him. He had a 
few dollars given him by his widowed mother. Upon 
arriving he fell in with the wrong crowd. They found 
he had a little money. They led him into a dram shop, 
and from the dram shop into still worse dives, and then 
he was robbed. A fight and an arrest told the story. 
I arranged to get him out, and shall never forget his 
parting words: "I'm going home to my mammy." 
Boys, everything depends upon your early associates. 
O, that you could be made to feel it as I know it. Mr. 
Beecher tells of a large tree in his father's yard. It 
had stood there for years. Finally they noticed a very 
peculiar vine growing around it. But they paid little 



THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 39 

attention to it, as it grew very slowly. But after some 
years the tree died, and they dug up the old stump, and 
to their great astonishment they found that this old vine 
had so entwined itself around the roots of the old tree 
as to cut off circulation, and death was inevitable. So, 
my young friends, with evil associations. They may 
be ever so flattering in their outward expressions, but 
beneath the surface they are constantly reaching forth 
to destroy you. Beware of them as you would the 
Python. In going into any community always look 
out for the best. Not best in the sense most people 
regard best. A great many think the term best refers 
to the old Colonels, the Captains, the Majors and what 
little remains of the old blooded animals who once 
lived. Some people are so reckless in the use of the 
term "best'' as to make it apply to the little withered 
crop of dudes, dudines and dudlets that remains. A 
lady some time ago said to me, "the best people dance." 
I said, "beg your pardon; Who are they?" And when 
she had named them she had called over a list of 
"would-be's" — a list of old fops and old maids, with 
now and then a very good couple. But they'll have to 
quit, or they'll be just like the others. Certainly the 
girl will be an old maid. It was never known to fail. 
That's the way to make them. If I had a daughter, 
and wanted to make a first-class old maid out of her, 
I'd put her out on the ball-room floor and let every 
spike-tail snob in town put his arms around her, and 
I'd be gratified. No, don't hunt for that kind of "best." 
Hunt for the young men who are moral; who don't 



40 THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 

drink, play cards nor dance, but who go to church and 
Sunday-school and spend their idle hours at home. 
And thus selecting your companions, you'll have no 
trouble with them. 

THE NATURE OF SIN. 

Third. — Again, the greatest trouble with young peo- 
ple is to get them to have a proper conception of the 
nature of sin. What is sin? God's word gives us but 
one definition of sin: "Sin is the transgression of the 
law." The law of God is the life of the soul ; therefore 
sin is the destroyer of soul-life. The best definition out- 
side of that given in the Bible is given by Mr. Spurgeon. 
He says sin is a cancer which eats up and destroys the 
soul's prospect for immortal glory, and wrecks and 
ruins it for life. This is awful, if true, and I think by 
following the analogy a little way we shall see it to be 
true. 

First. — In its insidiousness. Dr. D. Hays Agnew, 
than whom there has not lived upon this continent, in 
my judgment, a greater surgeon, says, in speaking of 
insidious diseases: "Of all the insidious diseases 
known to man, this we call cancer is the worst. We 
never know how, when or where it is going to make its 
attack upon the body. Whether in some of the less 
hurtful ways, upon the surface, and submit for treat- 
ment, or whether in its ravaging thirst for human life, 
it will lay its dirty hand upon some internal organ and 
prove death." To those who have had any experience 



THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 41 

along this line, these words are recognized as the 
words of a wise man. The man who has in his blood 
the germ of cancer may never feel secure. Sooner or 
later it will assert itself upon him. 

But not more insidious in its attack upon the phys- 
ical man is the germ of cancer, than is the germ of sin 
to the spiritual man. Beginning as it does as but a 
small floating organism, so to speak, it courses itself 
through the various avenues of life in search for the 
proper time and place, and when it has found them it 
sends its dirty, slimy roots and rootlets into the vital 
principle of life, and soon claims its victim. 

PETER DEGRAAP, THE CONDEMNED CRIMINAL. 

O, the insidiousness of sin! How it undermines and 
destroys bright hopes and good prospects! How it 
steals the innocent babe from its mother's breast, leads 
him on through the years of his development, prom- 
ising bright things, but in the end placing him upon 
the hangman's gallows! 

When I lived in the city of Winston, N. C, a young 
white man of twenty-one was convicted of the murder 
of a young white woman. His name was Peter De- 
graaf. Great interest was manifested concerning the 
trial. I w r as his spiritual adviser. Just before his 
execution he said: "Tell every young man to let whis- 
key, pistols and bad women alone." "Once," he con- 
tinued, "I was innocent, but gradually I was led astray 
until now what a spectacle!" Young man, take warn- 



42 THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 

ing. This is a mighty enemy with which you are con- 
tending. 

But you say, "it will never get me." O, no, certainly 
not. Whoever thought that it would master them? 
Did you ever know of one who expected it to be their 
ruin? "Never get me." Ah! young man, you don't 
know your doom. I know it is all smiles now; but 
listen : the day will not always be so bright. The sky 
will not always be so clear. The germ of sin will show 
itself and you its fruits must reap. Sampson, when he 
fondly lay his head in the lap of Delilah, never dreamed 
of its consequences. David, when he first looked upon 
the beautiful form of the wife of Uriah, never thought 
that it would lead on and on until he became an adul- 
terer and a murderer; and yet David had much more 
power of resistance than you have tonight. 

NO DANGER, NO DANGER. 

But you say, "no danger, no danger in me." You 
are told about these things, but they make no impres- 
sion upon you. There is "no danger" to you. Your 
bold self-satisfaction and determination remind me of 
an incident which occurred in a London theatre. A 
snake-charmer gave an exhibition. He had the stage 
decked with flowers and shrubbery till it resembled a 
flower garden. In this garden was a large anaconda 
snake, with which the performer would play as if it 
were a frolicsome, harmless kitten. He would appear 
on the stage, and when the applause that greeted him 



THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 43 

had ceased, he would tell the people not to be uneasy, 
as the snake was tame, so that there was no danger in 
handling it. At one of these exhibitions the anaconda 
tried to entwine itself around its keeper's body. With 
a mighty effort the keeper succeeded in unwinding the 
coils of the serpent and dashed it to the floor. Some of 
the spectators begged him to cease — implored him not 
to fondle with the dangerous monster; but he told 
them only to be quiet — that there was no danger, and 
that those weak-kneed, chicken-hearted people who 
were always afraid should shut up or leave the 
building. 

At that point the snake raised its head again, though 
its tail was motionless. The performer returned to it; 
but as he did so the huge monster suddenly began to 
entwine itself around the man's body. The performer 
again attempted to free himself, shouting, meanwhile, 
"keep quiet, keep quiet, there is no danger — no danger 
whatever!" But hardly had the words escaped his lips 
ere another sound was heard — a loud, w T ild, horrible 
cry of pain, succeeded by the noise of cracking bones 
and the weird death-rattle of the strangling victim of 
his own temerity. 

Oh! young men, go on if you will in the enjoyment 
of the so-called pleasures of sin. You will feel its cold 
and merciless coils some of these days fastening them- 
selves around you. It will be too late, then, to throw 
off those evil habits which you have been forming all 
through the passing years. 

Second. — In its loathsomeness. Not onlv is sin like 



44 THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 

unto cancer in the insidious manner of its attack, but 
also in the exceeding loathsomeness of its nature. The 
other day I visited a poor woman suffering with a 
facial cancer. What a pitiable sight to behold! I 
shall not attempt to describe it — I would not if I could. 
I have too much regard for your sensitive nerves. In 
agony of pain she was awaiting her final summons. I 
have also visited the great cancer hospital of New 
York city, the greatest institution of its kind in the 
world. Hundreds of poor sufferers are there, and 
despite the great care taken with them, yet the strong- 
est-nerved man, as he stands there and beholds them, 
will quiver and shake. But this thing in us we call sin 
is none the less loathsome in its nature than is this dis- 
ease. Can you imagine a sight more to be shunned 
than that of a young man who has been overcome by 
sinful habits to the extent that he has lost his manhood 
and now lives in the gutters, in the dens of infamy or 
in the prisons? "Don't go near him for the w T orld" 
was said the other day by a good mother to her little 
boy who came in and told her of a young man who had 
staggered up the steps and was asking for a piece of 
bread. What was the matter? Ah, the poor boy was 
loathsome. He had come out of a good home, had a 
godly father and mother, had at one time a good pros- 
pect for life ; but he had fallen in with a bad crowd and 
had contracted the habit of drink until now he was a 
walking devil. Mothers are afraid to trust their chil- 
dren in his presence while he eats a morsel of bread. 



THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 



SOCIAL ROTTENNESS. 



And it makes no difference at all how well you carry 
yourself in what is known as society. You may move 
in the very highest circles so-called. Your persons 
may be adorned with the most costly apparel. Indeed 
you may be the leader in all the social events in your 
sphere, yet with the germ of sin unatoned for by Christ, 
you are a man of putrefaction and decay. And all 
that is needed to bring to light this sad fact is time and 
opportunity. Only a few months ago a passenger 
train with several passengers went down into a broad, 
deep stream out West. An investigation was held and 
the cause was found to exist in the construction of the 
beam. During its molding a bit of air by some means 
found its way into the centre of the shaft, and a cavity 
was the result. The outside looked well. No sign 
of a flaw was observed, but finally, when under the 
pressure of a heavy burden it asserted itself, the shaft 
gave away and the great bridge with a mighty crash 
came to the ground. So are hidden flaws in the beam 
of life. That character, young man, may be put off 
upon the public as sound for a while. You may polish 
the outside. You may run upon family history and 
blood. But let me impress you with this truth: All 
that you need to be a w r reck is the proper kind of oppor- 
tunity. That faulty spot, that unpardoned sin in your 
heart, will assert itself sooner or later. O, young men, 
be wise; wait not for the test. Flee from sin. 



46 THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 

ITS DESTRUCTION TO LIFE. 

Third. — Sin is like the cancer in its destruction to 
soul life. Thus far we have been considering sin 
largely with reference to its blightening effects in this 
life. We have seen its insidiousness, its loathsome- 
ness, and now we come to deal with the most important 
point in our study — its destruction to soul life. It 
would be bad enough if sin in its greed only touched 
this life — bad enough if it only robbed us of our bright 
prospects and our social position; but it will not, it 
cannot stop there. Like the insect that begins at the 
outside of the tree and is not content until he has pene- 
trated the heart, or the panther, not content with sim- 
ply mutilating and destroying the body, but must, in 
his thirst for human blood, go deeper and cut out the 
heart, the fountain of life, so is sin. It is not content 
with destroying life, but must go further and fasten its 
mighty, iron grasp upon the heart-centre of life and eat 
up and destroy its prospects for immortal glory. 

LOST! LOST!! 

O, that I could fire you with this thought tonight — 
the final culmination of all sin, when it must end at last. 
Will you listen to me tonight, unsaved men? "\ Wan- 
derer in sin, will you not stop in your heedless march 
and let ring in your ears for a moment the significance 
of this truth? 4 

Some years ago a man was benighted in a mining 



THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 47 

region. He lost his way. The darkness was dense, 
the dangers were thick. The next step might precipi- 
tate him down some awful shaft, some gloomy pit, and 
dash him bruised and shapeless upon its floor. He 
knew his peril, and he stopped, stood still, and began 
to cry, "Lost! lost !! lost!!!" A cottager heard the 
sound, and, grasping a lantern, hurried forth to answer 
the cry, "Lost! lost !! lost!!!" The lost man saw in the 
distance the glimmer of his light; it came nearer until, 
as its rays flashed through the surrounding mist, he 
found that he stood upon the very verge of death itself! 
Another step would have plunged him down a tremen- 
dous shaft a crushed and mangled corpse! One step! 
one step!! O, think of it! so close to death and eter- 
nity! Young men, you are lost tonight, wandering 
about in sin. O, for some divine light to come into 
our midst and shine away the mist and show you 
the possible danger which lies out before you. 
Stop! stop!! See the awful pit out of whose mouth 
comes the groans of agony of the lost souls of 
hell. Stop in your wanderings lest another step 
will plunge you in despair. O, see the light which 
God has given you through Jesus the Son. Come 
unto him and be saved tonight. 






IN THE GUTTER; 

OR, 
OVERCOME WITH EVIL. 



"And when he had spent all, there arose a mighty famine in that land, 
and he began to be in want."— Luke xv: 14. 

"And when he came to himself, he said, How many hired servants of 
my father's have bread enough and to spare,. and I perish with hunger?" — 
Luke xv : 17. 



CHAPTER IV. 
IN THE GUTTER; 

OR, 

OVERCOME WITH EVIL. 

Things have wonderfully changed in the experience 
•of our young man. In our last, we saw him u out in the 
world/' having a gay time. He was sowing wild oats. 
He had plenty of money and plenty of friends, who 
voted him the finest fellow in town. But now what a 
change! You remember, we made a prediction con- 
cerning him; that he'd come to want if he continued in 
that course. No such a fast life can last. It would 
break a Vanderbilt in time. And yet many young 
men seem to think it is all right. I made a prediction 
some time ago to a member of my church in this city 
concerning a young man whose career I have been 
watching. He was known as the city dude. Drove 
his tandem team, and had his valet to accompany him 
w r hen possible. I have felt sorry for him, for I am sure 
that that boy, unless he changes his manner of spend- 
ing his father's money, will ere long be "in the gutter" 
begging bread. I don't know what he wants those 
horses for, unless it is to pull the water on his brain. It 
is strange to me that fathers will allow such a thing. 
It seems to me that they might know that it would 



52 THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 

lead a boy to nothing. But it seems that somehow 
parents are often blinded to the faults of their own 
children. 

So our young hero is only fulfilling prophesy. It's 
a sad picture ! It's always sad to see a promising boy 
come to nothing. It means so much. The further 
hope of this country is in her young men. They are 
going to occupy the places of trust soon. They will 
manage the affairs of State. They will preach the gos- 
pel and control the world. What a pity then to see 
even a small per cent, of them come to naught ! 

IN THE GUTTER. 

Let us see in what particular our young man was in 
the gutter. 

First. — Financially. — It has not been long since he 
started with plenty of money. I do not know how 
much. I should say a sufficiency at least. It makes 
little difference about the amount, for it was all he had. 
It is not the amount of money a young man has when 
he starts. It is not what he makes; it is the way in 
which he uses what he gets. There are young men in 
this city getting along better on $30 a month than 
others getting $100. Why? Because they are taking 
care of what they get. 

The prodigal spent his money in riotous living, and 
was in want. Boys, how many of you are doing the 
same thing? A young man today can't afford to wear 
a "ready-made" suit of clothes. He must go to the 



THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 53 

best tailor and wear the best he can get and pay the 
best price for it. He can't walk with his girl to the 
opera ; he must get a carriage and drive. A great rivalry 
seems to exist in the extravagance business, and the 
young man who can do the biggest fool piece of ex- 
travagance is for the time the popular fellow. 

Young men, stop and think. There is coming a 
rainy day. You may not now see even the slightest 
cloud in your sky, but it will come, and you will rue 
the days of your folly. 

WHAT HE MIGHT HAVE DONE. 

In order that we may be impressed with his present 
sad surroundings, let us pause long enough to see 
what he might have done with his money. 

First. — He might have educated himself. Many a 
boy would have jumped at his chance for an educa- 
tion. Oh, the boys today longing for an education! 
Some of them so anxious that they risk everything to 
obtain it. When I was a student at Wake Forest College, 
North Carolina, I remember a young man who came 
there with everything in the w T orld he had on his back. 
He didn't have any encouragement save from the fac- 
ulty of that noble institution, who have always stood 
for the poor boys. He battled against every obstacle 
imaginable, but finally came out conquerer, and today 
is occupying one of the most prominent posts of duty 
to be obtained. How easy for a young man with 
money to equip himself in this way! Young men, put 



54 THE MODERIV PRODIGAL. 

a peg here, if you come into the possession of money,, 
either by your own labor or by inheritance, and have 
not a liberal education; stop everything and go to 
school and fit yourself for the real pleasures of life. 
This will be wealth which cannot be destroyed. 

Again, he might have invested his money in some 
good business, and thus have saved himself this shame 
and disgrace. I wish I could impress upon young 
men the importance of saving and wisely investing 
their money. There are enough young men here in 
Roanoke, getting good salaries, if they would only 
take care of them, to start two or three good cotton 
factories in our city, which would not only bring them 
in good returns, but bless the entire community. But 
instead of this, it all goes in "riotous living." But sup- 
pose a young man can find no good business in which 
to invest his earnings? Then I would bury it. I have 
a thousand times more respect for the man who hides 
his money than for the man who throws it away in 
"riotous living." I heard of a man during the war who 
buried his money and afterwards -forgot where he put 
it. Everybody laughed at him; but it was a thousand 
times better for that man's sons than if they had taken 
it and done as most others did — spent it in fast living. 
It is an awful, dangerous thing for some boys to come 
in possession of wealth. It generally means death to 
their future prospects. 

But if he had no other way to have spent his money 
he could have put it in some good charitable cause, and 
thus have reaped perhaps the largest possible dividend. 



THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 55 

The true object of life, as has been said, is the good of 
our fellow-man and the glory of God. No man will 
ever make a mistake who invests in this cause. Money 
spent here is never lost. "Give and it shall be given 
unto you, good measure, pressed down and shaken 
together and running over. For with the same meas- 
ure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you 
again." This is the promise of the Master. It is His 
principle of business. "Seek ye first the kingdom of 
God and His righteousness, and all these things shall 
be added unto you.'' I wish so much every young 
man could appreciate this motto text. No man who 
has ever made it the rule of his life has ever come to 
want. The inexhaustible storehouse of God is behind 
Him. He cannot fail. 

SOCIALLY DOWN. 

Second. — But he was down socially and morally. 

It would have been bad enough for him to have been 
in the gutter financially, but when he has added to his 
financial want his social and moral depravity, it is too 
great a pity. 

Think of this contrast : a proud young heir, now eat- 
ing with the hogs. Once the finest dressed man in 
town, now in rags. Once popular with boys and 
girls, now snubbed by them all. What a mighty change 
in so short a time. 

Young man, you can afford to lose your money, but 
let me tell you, you can't afford to lose your character. 



56 THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 

When that is gone, you are gone. But this is only the 
sad story of many a boy within the range of my ac- 
quaintance. They have been warned and warned, but 
they go on in their wild extravagant career. You may 
go on. You may smile at the prophesy, but unless 
there is a change in the manner of some of your con- 
duct, you will ere long be lost in the deep sea of degra- 
dation and ruin. 

But you say, "Who in our midst is wasting his sub- 
stance in riotous living; we are not such a set of low, 
degraded fellows as your picture represents us?'* Well, 
now, let us see. Riotous does not necessarily mean 
that a man is to fight and curse and drink whiskey. A 
fellow may be very riotous in his manner of living, and 
yet be quiet about it. Recently, I submitted a series 
of questions to ten of our leading business men, with- 
out regard to church or religious opinions. These 
questions were asked of them purely as business men. 
The circular sent out was as follows : 

"IN THE INTEREST OF YOUNG MEN. 

"Mr. 

"Dear Sir: As perhaps you know, I am now deliver- 
ing a series of practical talks to young men, with the 
view of guarding them and strengthening them against 
certain regarded dangerous points in life ; and in order 
that I may be as plain and helpful as possible, I find it 
necessary to address a few questions to you, as a busi- 
ness man in Roanoke, which I trust you will consider, 
and in as condensed a manner as possible give me 



THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 57 

your candid opinion. I assure you that your opinion, 
however much it may differ from mine, will by no 
means be a subject of criticism and discussion. I 
trust that in your answer you will be as frank and open 
as the nature of the case demands, and that you will 
have no hesitation whatever in speaking your senti- 
ment. If you desire it, your name will be kept as a 
secret; however, it might be better to give with your 
opinion the weight of your influence to help in the fur- 
therance of your sentiment. 

"Please answer the following questions as early as 
possible, and return to me, No. 356 Campbell avenue: 

"Question One — When, in your judgment, is a 
young man's most dangerous age? 

"Question Two — What are some of the most danger- 
ous points which at this time the young man has to 
pass? 

"Question Three — What would constitute the very 
best recommendation for a young man to present to 
you for employment? 

"Question Four — What influence would the knowl- 
edge that a young man was given to an occasional use 
of spiritous liquors have upon you in desiring his ser- 
vices? 

"Question Five — What effect would it have upon 
you to know that a young man seeking employment 
tinder you — a position of trust — was habitually guilty 
of— 

"First, playing cards. 

"Second, attending germans. 



58 THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 

Third, baseball (professional). 

"Fourth, social clubs. 

"Fifth, theatres (indiscriminate). 

"Question Six — Please give me, as near as possible, 
your estimate of what it takes to constitute a model 
young man in business." 

After I had obtained the answers to these ques- 
tions, I tabulated them according to their agreement, 
and I give you the results. All agree in substance 
that from sixteen to twenty-five is the danger period. 
All agree that dissipation, fondness for games, card- 
playing, the wine cup, staying from home at night, 
bad books and evil associates are the greatest dangers. 
All agree, also, in substance that the best recommend- 
ation a young man can produce is a sober, honest, 
Christian character. In answer to question four r 
"What influence would it have upon you to know that 
a young man desiring a position of trust with you was 
habitually guilty of — 

i. Taking a social glass of wine All answer: 
"Would not have him." 

2. Attending germans. Seven out of ten say: 
"Would not want him" Three say: "Would investi- 
gate further." 

3. Attending professional baseball Nine out of ten 
say: "Would not want him — takes time, and likely to 
lead astray." One says: "Would look into his other 
qualities." 

4. Attending promiscuous theatres. Nine out of 



THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 59 

ten say: " Would rather not have him — a dangerous 
habit." 

5. Social clubs. Eight out of ten say: " Would not 
want him." The others say: "It would depend some 
upon the nature of the club." One of the eight said in 
his answer: "I regard the meanest thing the devil ever 
made is whiskey; next to this is a social club." 

6. Card-playing. All answer: "Would not have 
him." 

Now, as I said, these answers came from men who 
answered from strictly business standpoints, and they 
represent bankers, merchants and railroad men. 

So, young men, the kind of rioting I am after in this 
talk is that which is engaged in by perhaps most of 
our young men. There is a craze for amusements and 
sports. Our people are going wild over them. There 
must be a stop to it. Business men are not going to 
stand it. I beg you then listen to them, as they speak 
from experience, many of them, and warn you against 
these so-called pleasures which are, after all, nothing 
but traps in which to catch your hard earnings. 

A GREAT SCANDAL, AND WHAT CAUSED IT. 

Now, I would not be willing to leave this subject 
with you until I have appended at least one other pres- 
ent-day cause for moral and social degradation. It is 
the reckless demands of modern society. Few men 
can afford it, and yet many are trying. A young man 



60 THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 

said to me recently at my boarding-house: "Very few 
young men can afford today to associate with young 
ladies; the demands are too great/' This is a sad com- 
mentary upon our civilization, and yet true. Girls are 
largely to blame for this, too. They are never so well 
pleased as when they can get a fellow who is fool 
enough to dude around and waste his money on them. 
Some time ago I picked up a paper and saw this ac- 
count, which I give just as I read it. It shows the end 
of such a life. God help you to learn the lesson: 

"Atlanta, Ga., January 12. — Lewis Redwine was 
sentenced today by Judge Pardee to six years in the 
penitentiary. When the court opened, Col. Nat. 
Hammond made a plea for a light sentence. Captain 
Jackson, on behalf of the government, asked for jus- 
tice, declaring that the wrecking of the Gate City Bank 
had been followed by widespread distress. Captain 
Jackson referred dramatically to the suicide of his own 
son, as one of the circumstances connected with the 
case. 

"Judge Pardee, in passing sentence on Redwine, 
said: T have considered this man was a very dangerous 
man and that he ought to be sent up for the longest 
period that I could name. The dexterity which he 
showed in covering up his tracks, the ingenious 
schemes resorted to, are such that a man with a badly- 
balanced mind would not have thought of. Consider- 
ing all this, my tendency would be to impose a heavy 
sentence on this defendant. But there is the other 



THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 61 

side. Here is a young man employed in this banking 
house, goes into it as a boy, stays there a number of 
years, is promoted rapidly, and he is finally given a 
high position and placed in charge of all the cash of 
the bank. He is paid a salary of $1500. 

" 'At the same time, he is meeting the demands of 
Atlanta society. He has not only to support himself 
on that salary, but must support the demands of At- 
lanta society. He finds in the course of his business 
that this money is treated as merchandise, that it is 
treated as a bagatelle. He finds other young men in 
other banks who are meeting demands of Atlanta so- 
ciety, and who loan him $5000 and $10,000 on his 
check, and he naturally yields to temptation, and when 
he has yielded he naturally covers it up. 

" 'I am inclined to think that is the view I ought 
to take of it; at the same time I don't think I should 
give this man the minimum sentence of law.' 

"The court then explained the indictments for the 
embezzlement of $15,000; $4000 were covered by the 
indictment for embezzling $103,178, and that he was 
satisfied that there was but one shortage. 

" 'Under the circumstances, I deem it my duty to 
sentence the defendant on each indictment. Let the 
defendant stand up/ said the court. 

"Redwine stood up, and, supporting himself against 
the back of a chair, gazed steadily into the eyes of the 
judge, who was pronouncing the words that would 
legally deprive him of his liberty. 'The sentence of 



62 THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 

the court is that you shall serve six years in the Co- 
lumbus, Ohio, penitentiary. That sentence is im- 
posed in each one of the three indictments, the sen- 
tence of each to be served concurrently with the 
other.' " 

Thus went out a bright light. A young man is 
ruined, and who are the mourners? 



THE YOUNG MAN THINKING; 

OR, 

THE HOPEFUL SIGN. 



"And when lie came to himself, he said, How many hired servants of 
my father's have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger?"— 
Luke xv: 17. 



CHAPTER V. 
THE YOUNG MAN THINKING; 

OR, 

THE HOPEFUL SIGN. 

In our past three talks we have been trying to show 
the causes which operated in bringing our young man 
to ruin. Tonight we take an entirely different and a 
more hopeful view of him. He has at last, after a good 
deal of lost time and wasted opportunity, with a wasted 
fortune and shattered constitution, come to himself. 

HE IS THINKING. 

Thinking of the past. The day, perhaps, when he 
left home. Thinking of his father's advice and his 
mother's tears. Of his eventful journey in this strange 
country. Thinking of his friends. How considerate 
they once were? How they had led him into sin and 
ruin, obtained what he had and are now gone. Think- 
ing of the present, with its loathsome surroundings. 
Of the future; what he should do with himself. Think- 
ing! meditating! O, how sad! And yet there is great 
comfort to be obtained as we look upon him in this 
condition. It is always encouraging to find a young 
man thinking. Well might the poet sing: 



66 THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 

"In solitude I often come, 
And find my sweetest joys." 

O, if he had stopped sooner and thought, things 
would certainly have been different. He would never 
have gone so far; no, no, he would have seen the end. 
But this he would not do. Now, as he sees himself 
he would give the world to retrace his steps, but it is 
too late. His time has been lost. His money is all 
gone. His character is ruined, and the world has 
turned its back upon him. A sad, sad picture. 

But, my friends, it is but the experience of many here 
tonight doubtless. I remember talking to a criminal 
once who pointed out to me, in his Bible, "The wages 
of sin is death/' "O," said he, "I wish I could have 
understood this a year ago as I understand it today." 
He had not thought about it. O, the need of thinkers! 
Men who will stop business and pleasure and think. 

The fact is the great need of this age is more men 
who do their own thinking. 

Nothing is accomplished without it. "We flash our 
eyes today up into the starry heavens, calculate dis- 
tances and dimensions of those sparkling bodies. But 
we must remember that it has taken thought to accom- 
plish all this. We have harnessed the lightning and 
chained it to the earth. But it has taken thought. 
We have penetrated the bowels of the earth and 
brought therefrom its hidden treasures. But this, too, 
has taken thought. Without it the world is chaos and 
ruin. With it the world is one vast ever-blooming 



THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 67 

flower garden, yielding its sweet perfume to the patient 
toiler. If we go back in the history of arts and inven- 
tions we shall see an Englishman seated under a tall 
oak. He spies a spider spinning his web from tree to 
tree. He goes home and shuts himself up in his room, 
where he remains for days thinking. And when he 
comes forth he astonishes the world with a plan for a 
suspension bridge with which he could bridge hitherto 
bridgeless chasms. You say he was a genius. ,No, 
he was a thinker. After all, genius is the power to 
think. 

May we not, then, well afford in this talk to consider 
the proposition "the greatest need of the age is men 
who think." 

MAN VS. A MACHINE. 

First. — Men who think concerning themselves. It 
is one thing to be an ape and another to be a man. 
The ape acts because he sees a man act. The man 
acts, or should act, because he chooses to act. But 
alas! there are many human apes in the world. Men 
who act just because somebody else acts. Go into any 
calling of life; how few people act upon their judgment 
of a thing? How few men really do any thinking. 
We are too content to live the machine life. I went in 
a shoe factory once and found one machine turning 
out more shoes in a day than one hundred men could 
turn out in the same time. But after all, though a 
machine can and does turn out a hundred times more 
shoes, hats or caps than a man, still the lowest down 



68 . THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 

criminal who peeps from behind prison bars or is 
chained to the floor of the lowest room in the lowest 
dungeon of earth is worth all the machinery of the 
w r orld, because he is endowed with the faculty of 
thought. Beecher said one day he stood and watched 
a Hoe's printing press, with the latest improvements,, 
taking the paper, wetting it and printing it on both 
sides, and with nimble fingers drawing it this way and 
that way and turning it over and folding it and throw- 
ing it into a box, five or ten thousand an hour ready for 
the mail. He says it was hard to realize that somehow 
the thing did not think. He says further the first time 
he ever saw the looms in a great factory at work that 
they were so life-like that he remarked to a friend,, 
"that thing ought to vote." And by the way, it was 
about just as well qualified to perform this sacred rite 
as many who go year after year to our ballot-boxes, 
and with all eyes closed save the ever-open eye of prej- 
udice, and deposit their ballots, and yet we boast of 
our freedom at the ballot-box. It's the freedom of a 
slave. 

Man is not a machine. The machine never changes. 
It beats along in an old beaten path performing its 
function according to the will of its operator. Man 
thinks, or is at least able to think, to plan for himself 
according to the exigencies of the case. But alas, how 
many of our young men today are content with merely 
being human machines. They beat along in the old 
paths, not thinking or caring whither they are going 
or what will be their end. 



THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 69 

THE BOOK TO STUDY. 

But what shall we, as young men, consider? What 
book shall we study? I answer there is no greater 
book than the book of self. Do not study the external 
part. O, there is ample study along this line. Open 
its lids. Go down into its secret parts. See its com- 
position. I saw a Bible being prepared for the 
World's Fair that cost $1000, but when the lids were 
opened it was nothing more than any other Bible. All 
the extra work was on the outside. So it is not the 
outside of self you are so much concerned about. 
That may for the time enhance your value, but the real 
value of yourself is to be realized only from within. 

THE POWER OF HABIT. 

Study to see your real condition; your strong 
points; your weak points; your habits. O, the power 
of habit. If you could only be fired with the power of 
early habits, what a blessing. A story is told in the life 
of General Sheridan that a battle occurred near the 
canal where a large number of his old worn-out horses 
were confined. During the heavy firing they grew 
warlike, formed in squadrons and charged upon a 
number of mules, two of whom they killed, when the 
rest fled. They next charged upon and overthrew a 
high rail fence, and did not cease their wild demon- 
strations until the firing had entirely ceased. If, now, 



70 THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 

my young friends, habit is so powerful with the brute, 
may it not likewise be true of man. Say what we will, 
we are largely creatures of habit. I heard of a man 
who was very absent-minded. He formed the habit 
of relying upon his note-book for everything he did. 
Once he was stopping at a strange hotel. He was 
afraid he would not find his clothes next morning, so 
he wrote down in his note-book, "shoes under the bed, 
coat and vest in the wardrobe, pants on the chair, hat 
on the rack, collar, cuffs and tie on the washstand," and 
then, lest he might forget his own whereabouts, he 
wrote, "and Dinkelspeil in bed." Next morning the 
sound of the gong waked him up. He proceeded to 
dress. Taking his book he said, "pants on the chair." 
He then put on his pants. "Collar, cuffs and tie on 
washstand." He put them on. "Coat and vest in 
wardrobe." He put them on. "Shoes under the 
bed." He put them on. Now he is about ready, and 
lest he might have forgotten something, he took his 
book and read, "Dinkelspeil in bed." He went to the 
bed and began his search. But lo! he was gone. 
"Where upon the face of the earth is old 'Dink' any- 
way," he said. After a good deal of trouble, however, 
the porter succeeded in convincing him that he was 
not lost. 

Young man, look to your habits. It is all right if 
you are forming good habits. But O, it will be awful 
if they are bad. Stop, then, and think on these 
things. 



THE MODERN PRODIGAL, 71 

MEN AND THINGS. 

Second. — We want men today who will think con- 
cerning men and things. We want to know our rela- 
tionship to others. We want to know their strong 
points and their weaknesses. But above all give inde- 
pendent thought to things and circumstances around 
you. This is needful in order that you may know 
where to place yourself wisely. As we said awhile 
ago, there is too much taking things for granted today. 
Our actions are too largely determined by prejudice. 
We make up our minds aforehand. It was so w r hen 
our Saviour was here. They asked then if any good 
thing could come out of Nazareth. This is what cor- 
rupts our politics and ruins our government. I knew 
a young man just about the right age to begin loving 
the girls and to love hard. He lived next door to a 
revenue officer. It was in the days of republican rule. 
The revenue officer had a pretty little blue-eyed girl, 
and the young man fell in love with her. He would 
steal away occasionally and chat with the girl. One 
day his father saw him over there and called him home. 
"Son, said the angry, disgraced father," "if I ever catch 
you over there again I'll give you a whaling." "Why 
father?" said the scared lad. "Why don't you know 
that girl's daddy is an old whiskey noser — an old reve- 
nue officer?" Well yes, father, but what of that?" 
"Why I feel disgraced; don't you let me ever catch 
you there again." The boy was likewise ashamed, and 



72 THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 

did not go any more, at least for a while. A year or 
two brought a change. Mr. Cleveland was President. 
One day the boy heard his father talking and saw a 
great petition. What do you think it was. Why he 
was ransacking creation to get that same old "noser's" 
job. "Ah, ha," said the lad, "I see a thing is right 
when a fellow is in and wrong when a fellow is out; 
yes, yes; I see, I see." What the world wants today, 
dear friends, is men who will think about such things 
and decide according to the real merits of a thing, and 
not by blind prejudice. How our whole life, political 
and social, would be changed if only this were true. 

MY IMPRESSIONS OF GENERAL GRANT. 

I remember when I was a boy it was thought at one 
time that General Grant, with a party of Northern men, 
would visit Raleigh. I shall never forget my feelings 
then. I first thought it would be death to Raleigh and 
everybody there. What! General Grant coming to 
Raleigh! Who could have been so foolish as to have 
consented for him to come there with a gang of Yan- 
kees? But today, as I study for myself the history of 
great men, I accord to General Grant a place among 
the greatest men of his time, and were he living today I 
would feel honored for life to have him not only visit 
my city, but my home. I say this in spite of the fact 
that I am as true a Southerner as walks the face of the 
earth. 



THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 73 

A ROUND MAN. 

Let me again, young man, call you to independ- 
ent thought. The world may call you cranky or 
three-cornered. But let them call. Remember once 
and forever, that a "round man" is not and cannot be 
a man. I have seen a game of pool, but glad I've 
never played. You know they have a large table, and 
at each corner they have some little pouches adjusted 
to round holes ; these holes exactly fit a perfectly round 
ball. The object in the game is in some way, by tap- 
ping the ball with a cue — a long stick — get these balls 
to roll across the table until they fall into one of these 
Tioles; and when they are all in that's game. I've 
thought this wonderfully illustrates the nature of a 
"round man." You hear men talk today, "he's a round 
man." You may set it down that they mean that he's 
a fellow for whom they can scratch a hole, and then, 
with the cue of their own conception they can, by tap- 
ping him, make him fit it. We don't want a round 
man. A man ought to be enough cranky and cor- 
nered to fit only such holes as he may elect to fill, 
according to his best judgments. 

THE HIGHEST MEDITATION. 

Third. — We want men, above everything else, who 
will think concerning God and their relationship to 
Him. It is w r ell enought to be fitted for life. Be wise 
in all of your actions pertaining to the things of life. 



74 THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 

But whatever you So, don't fail to think of God. O, 
that I could get you young men to come with me 
while we talk of God and Jesus Christ. O, that you 
could see Him — the crucified one; that you could get 
a glimpse into Gethsemane's garden and there behold 
the agonizing Christ as he wrestles with the load of the 
sin of earth's unnumbered millions. O, that you could 
see Him on the cross as your substitute. A finished 
salvation through a simple acceptance of His offering. 
Great God, breathe upon these young men as they sit 
in breathless silence and think upon Jesus. Come to 
yourself, and you have achieved a mighty victory. 
Come feeling with the poet — 

"When I survey the wondrous cross 
On which the Prince of glory died, 
My richest gain I count but loss, 
And pour contempt on all my pride. 

"Forbid it, Lord, that I should boast, 
Save in the death of Christ, my God; 
All the vain things that charm me most, 
I sacrifice them to His blood. 

"See, from His head, His hands, His feet, 
Sorrow and love flow mingled down; 
Did e'er such love and sorrow meet, 
Or thorns compose so rich a crown? 

"Were all the realms of nature mine, 
That were a present far too small; 
Love so amazing, so divine, 

Demands my soul, my life, my all." 



THE YOUNG MAN RETURNING; 

OR, 

RESOLUTION IN ACTION. 



"I will arise and go to my father, and will Bay unto him, Father, I 
have sinned against heaven and betp/^ thee. And am no more worthy to 
T>e called thy son : make me as one of thy hired servants.' 1 — Luke xv: 18, 19. 



CHAPTER VI. 
THE YOUNG MAN RETURNING; 

OR, 

RESOLUTION IN ACTION. 

It was still in the gutter that we left our young man 
in our last talk. But a great change had taken place 
in him. He had come to himself. He was thinking. 
We took great comfort from this fact, believing it to be 
a cause for rejoicing to find any young man engaged in 
serious thought. Oh, that more men would think! 
Since my last talk on this subject, a young man with 
early advantages equal to the best was made to pay 
the penalty of an awful crime upon the gallows. His 
confession was a great sermon. "Young men," said 
he, "early in life I formed the habit of drink. I was 
urged by friends and loved ones to stop, but I was 
hard-headed and would not. Step by step I went 
deeper and deeper in sin. I became desperate. Cared 
not for God or man. The crime for which I am to die 
was committed by me. I am not ready to die. I am 
now breaking the heart of a good mother. Don't 
charge her with blame. She did her part. But, oh, 
me ! put the blame upon my own shoulders. I did not 
think it would lead to this." 

Poor boy! he needed to stop and think. How many 



78 THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 

a scandal would be prevented, if we could only get men 
and women to think! 

But the prodigal didn't stop with thinking. Think- 
ing would do no good in itself. So often it is true of 
us, that we stop with the mere making of a resolution. 
I expect if all the good resolutions of this audience 
were put into one book they would make a volume as 
big as a pictorial history of the world. Luther Benson 
said he resolved in the presence of witnesses thirty 
times in one month to quit whiskey, and each time 
broke over. How many times we have resolved to no 
effect! But the prodigal did not stop with "resolut- 
ing." He arose and went to his father. He put his 
good resolution into action. And it is this thought 
specially that I want to impress upon your minds com- 
ing out of our analysis of the basis of success. 

EXECUTION VS. THEORY. 

Success in any department of life is not only depend- 
ent upon good resolutions, but right action. That is 
to say, it is just as essential to execute wisely as to plan 
wisely. 

First. — In Business. — Alexander the Great, when 
asked the secret of his successs in military life, said: 
"In not delaying when I decided/' Caesar said to his 
men once: "To fail to act is to die." A great French 
writer says: "No man thinks gloriously who fails to act 
gloriously." The Apostle says: "Faith without works 
is dead." 



THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 79 

What does this mean? Why, it means only to say 
that however high and noble our thoughts may be, 
still unless they find expression in the manner of our 
living they are of no avail. 

Let us illustrate this necessity by looking at the his- 
tory of some great men and movements. 

Solomon De Cause, a Norman, first discovered the 
power of steam to move a vessel. His mind was so 
full of the scheme that he was judged crazy, and died 
in prison. While Watts came upon the scene and ap- 
plied De Cause's theory and reaped the glory. 

Draper, more than fifty years ago, decided that it 
was possible to tap the surrounding membrane of the 
heart and relieve that dreaded disease known as heart 
dropsy; but it remained for another surgeon of decid- 
edly less ability in many respects to execute this theory 
and reap the reward. 

The theorist only can never be a success. A story is 
told of Sir Thomas More, who was wild on the subject 
of psychology. One day, his intimate friend, Eras- 
mus, called to see him. It was a very hot summer day. 
Sir Thomas argued with Erasmus, that as you believe 
a thing, so it will be. Finally Erasmus must leave. 
And going away, he went to Sir Thomas's stable, sad- 
dled his riding pony, leaving his cane by the trough, 
with this note : 

''Remember, sir, you told me. 
Believe and 'twill be; 
Believe a thing's a body, 
And a bodv you'll see. 



80 THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 

"So should you tire walking 
This hot summer tide, 
Believe this staff is Dobbin 
And straightway you'll ride." 

When Sir Thomas went out that evening and found 
this note, and his horse gone, he studied for a moment, 
and said "any theory is true, provided — ," and he never 
finished the proviso. It is action that makes success. 
Don't forget that. 

HOW TO DRAW A CROWD. 

A man came to Sam Jones, once, asking how he 
could draw a crowd to hear him preach. Mr. Jones 
asked him if he would follow his advice, and the 
preacher said if he could. "Well," said Jones, "you 
can." "Then I will," said the preacher, brightening* 
up. "Well, now," said the Rev. Sam, "next Sunday, 
when you go to your "pintment" don't go a-dragging 
your old self up in the pulpit like you were a hundred 
years old. But go a 'hoppin' ' up like you were 'a 
goin' ' to do something. Then the first thing you do, 
pull your long hair down over your eyes, and pop your 
fists, and say boo! Then if nobody moves, repeat it. 
And still if nobody moves, jump down and pitch some- 
body out the window. Then get back on your pulpit, 
and as the last man goes out of the house say boo! 
Now, then, go straight home. Next Sunday come 
back; and listen, brother, there will be 3000 people 



THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 81 

there. What for? Why, they have come to see and 
hear a man who's done something." I don't know 
whether this advice was ever taken or not. I rather 
doubt it, for I never heard of any funeral in those parts. 
But there is a point there. It is a lesson of action. I 
am not surprised at some congregations dying. Some 
preachers are so afraid of a sensation, they die with the 
rust. 

Many a business man has failed, because he did not 
have the power to execute. That is why we have so 
many financial graveyards around boomed towns and 
cities today. Men were theorists and not practical. 

CHARACTER BUILDING. 

Second. — True also in character building. The 
most important subject that can engage the attention 
of any young man is the building of his character. It 
has been said, "He builds a great thing who builds 
pyramids; but he builds a greater thing who builds a 
character." It is a great thing for a man to paint fine 
pictures and carve noble statues, but Michael Angelo's 
frescoings in the great Sistine Temple are not to be 
compared to the w T ondrous frescoing that is possible to 
be done inside the walls of the human heart. Every- 
thing depends upon your characters. You cannot 
afford to fail in the formatiyn of a character. And it is 
here, as in business, good intentions amount to noth- 
ing unless we have right action. 



82 THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 

THINK LIKE A SAINT, ACT LIKE A DEVIL. 

We often hear such expressions as, "It makes little 
difference what you do so you believe right." This is 
bosh. The idea! Think like a saint and act like a 
devil! Pilate believed right about Christ. He said 
he found no fault in Him; but we condemn Pilate be-' 
cause he didn't have the wisdom or the manhood to 
act upon his convictions. Good thoughts and right 
conduct must go hand in hand in the formation of a 
good character. 

Take up your bad habits, young men. How many 
times you have said, "Shame be upon me; I'll quit;" 
and yet you go right on in the same thing. 

BEATING A TRAIN. 

I have heard of a young man out West who one day 
bet some other young men that he could manage a 
freight train in a very novel way. Taking his hand- 
kerchief out of his pocket, he jumped upon the track, 
and as the train came around the bend he waved his 
handkerchief and shouted stop! The engineer, see- 
ing him, reversed his engine, blew for breaks, and 
came to a standstill. Meanwhile the young chap ran 
off in the woods without saying a word. The next 
da)' his companions bet him again that he could not 
succeed. The bet was accepted. The time came.' The 
train was coming. He jumped on the track and- re- 



THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 83 

peated the performance of the first day with the same 
success. So again they bet him that it could not be 
done, and again the challenge was accepted. This 
time an old man came up, and said: "Young man, you 
had better stop playing the fool." "Well," said the 
boy, "I am going to stop after this time." So he went 
on. He did as before. The engineer had gotten tired 
of his folly, and instead of reversing his engine, seemed 
to pull wider open the throttle. On came the train, 
and he was pitched twenty feet down an embankment. 
When they gathered around him to see him die, he said, 
in a low, sad tone, "I'm going to quit after this." Oh, 
how true to many of us — "am going to quit tomorrow !" 

Sometime ago in a neighboring city a great bank 
scandal was discovered and a prominent family 
brought to shame. That man knew he was wrong, 
and, as he said, had intended for ten years to replace 
that money before it was found out ; but he failed to do 
it. 

Young men, in your character-forming, which is 
one of the most important considerations of life, I call 
you now to right action. Start about it now. The 
longer you wait the harder to come back. 

THE CROWNING ACT. 

Third. — This is true in religion. There is no one 
present tonight who will not agree with me in saying 
that the crowning: act in the drama of life is the return 



84 THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 

to God from a life of sin and unbelief. Even a char- 
acter ever so good, which is built upon any other foun- 
dation than this, will fail in the end. Jesus is a rock 
upon which, if a man build, he will stand. To such 

HE IS THEIR DEFENDER. 

The man who builds upon Christ has a defender. 
He need not fear though the world turn its back upon 
him. I love to think of such blessed assurances as 
Isa. 41 : 10: "Fear thou not, for I am with thee; be not 
dismayed, for I am thy God; I will strengthen thee; 
yea, I w T ill help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the 
right hand of my righteousness." Yes, there is no oc- 
casion for fear if Jesus is our strength. I am afraid 
that this is the reason why we have so many cowards 
today in the Lord's work; they do not rest upon 
Christ. Young man, have you trouble in keeping out 
of sin? Do those old habits continue to haunt you? 
Are you afraid you can't hold out should you take the 
"new" step? Rest your hopes upon Jesus. He is not 
only able, but willing. Listen at the experience of an 
old veteran, the Apostle Paul: "For I am persuaded 
that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principali- 
ties, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to 
come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creation 
shall be able to separate us from the love of God which 
is in Christ Jesus our Lord." Do you want any better 
testimony than this? Arise, then, tonight. Come 
home to your Father. Lay your sins at His feet. 



THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 85 

"From every stormy wind that blows, 
From every swelling tide of woes, 
There is a calm, a sure retreat — 
'Tis found beneath the mercy-seat. 

"There is a place where Jesus sheds 
The oil of gladness on our heads, — 
A place of all on earth most sweet; 
It is the blood-bought mercy-seat. 

"There is a scene where spirits blend, 
Where friend holds fellowship with friend; 
Though sundered far, by faith they meet 
Around one common mercy-seat. 

"There, there on eagle wings we soar, 
And sin and sense molest no more, 
And heaven comes down our souls to greet, 
And glory crowns the mercy-seat." 

But not only does Christ as your foundation furnish 
you strength for service, but He enables you to be of 
the highest service to others. And I am tempted just 
here to give an account of the experience of a young 
lady, as published in the Ladies' Home Journal a short 
time ago. It conveys to my mind so completely the 
mission of life and the importance of right action even 
in little things. 

"Ruth, I have tickets for the concert of the Bell- 
ringers on Wednesday night; can you go?"' Alice said 
to a friend, as she stopped at her gate. 

"It is prayer-meeting night." 



86 THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 

"I know; but they sail for Europe Friday night, and 
this is their last concert." 

"But I never stay from prayer-meetings for any- 
thing.'' 

"But this is a sacred concert — and only once. We 
can worship just as well there." 

So, reluctantly, against her convictions, Ruth con- 
sented. 

That night the girl dreamed that an angel in shining 
raiment stood beside her, and asked, gently, "Where 
are you going tomorrow night?" 

And she answered: "I thought I would go to the 
concert." 

Then the angel said, sadly, "Have you so little ap- 
preciation of the value of a single soul?" 

Vividly the vision came back to Ruth the next morn- 
ing, as she lay, saying softly to herself, wondering 
what it could mean, "So little appreciation of the value 
of a single soul." 

She decided that she must take back her promise to 
the concert, and go to the prayer-meeting. Ruth sat 
in the house of prayer w T ith a strange joy in her soul, 
singing "Plenteous Grace." 

As the music ceased, the girl sprang impulsely to 
her feet. 

"I meant to hear the Bell-wringers tonight," she 
said, "but I decided I would rather go to prayer-meet- 
ing, and I am happier here than I would have been at 
the concert, and I am sure no music could be sweeter 
than the hymn we have just sung." 



THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 87 

As the hour for closing drew near, the pastor rose 
and invited anyone who would give themselves to 
Christ to come forward. As he waited in silence, a 
lady in mourning walked slowly up the aisle, and, 
kneeling, was shown the way to salvation. 

When the service was ended, a friend came to Ruth 
and said, "The lady who went forward wishes to be in- 
troduced to you." 

Much astonished, the girl w T ent to receive the intro- 
duction to Mrs. Walters. "I wanted to tell you," the 
lady said, "that I owe the fact of my being a Christian 
tonight to your testimony. I have not been inside of 
a church for ten years. I came here to please a friend, 
and when you said you would give up a concert for a 
prayer-meeting, and that no music could be sweeter to 
you than the hymn, 'Jesus, Lover of my Soul/ I 
thought to myself, 'There must be something in relig- 
ion, and I am going to have it. ? So I wish to thank 
you that it is because of your testimony I shall go 
home tonight a servant of the Lord Jesus Christ." 

Ruth held out her hand and pressed gratefully that 
of her new friend. She knew now the meaning of the 
angel's message. She could not tell Mrs. Walters 
how nearly she had come to proving recreant to her 
trust, nor of the dream that had influenced her in the 
true direction, so she answered, simply, "I thank you 
for telling me this. I shall never forget it." Yet she 
little guessed what cause she would always have to re- 
member it. 



88 THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 

Ruth's home was close beside a railroad track. 
About midnight she was awakened by a horrible 
crashing sound. Looking through the window', she 
could see where the midnight express and the 11.30 
freight had collided. The frantic cries of the frightened 
and the piercing shrieks of the wounded made her 
shudder. But she bravely put away all thoughts of 
self, and, calling her father, was soon ready to go with 
him to the rescue. And the first face that looked into 
her's as she stood beside the burning train was that of 
Mrs. Walters. 

Pale and peaceful it was, though showing how in- 
tensely she suffered. She was extricated and borne 
to Ruth's home. The power of speech was almost 
gone. She rallied a little as they laid her on Ruth's 
couch. Taking her hand and pressing it to her lips, 
she whispered feebly: 

"Child, I'm going — it was my last chance — what if 
you had not spoken — what if I had not taken it?" 

And kneeling there beside the dead, the hot tears 
raining down her face, Ruth promised the Father al- 
ways to do her duty, always to give her testimony, al- 
ways to appreciate the value of a single soul. 

Oh, young men, this is your highest duty, as well as 
your most gracious privilege. I insist that you shall 
look at it honestly and faithfully. Surely every man 
wants success. Roman history tells of an officer who 
served forty years in service of his country; fought 120 
successful battles ; won fourteen civic crowns ; but when 



THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 89 

he came to die, he directed that they should be de- 
stroyed. Said he, 'Tve lived for the wrong cause." 

Boys, is there a conviction in your soul tonight that 
you ought to come home? Don't sit and think longer, 
but up and make the journey. Start home tonight. 



AT HOME AT LAST; 

OR, 

A FATHER'S GRACIOUS SMILES. 



"And he arose and came to his father. But when he was yet a great 
way off, his father saw him, and had compassion, and ran, and fell on 
his neck, and kissed him."- Luke xv: 20. 

"For this my son was dead, and is alive again ; he was lost, and is 
found. And they began to be merry.' 1 — Luke xv: 24. 



CHAPTER VII. 
AT HOME AT LAST; 

OR, 

A FATHER'S GRACIOUS SVTIIvES. 

It is my purpose in this talk to follow our young 
man home, and show his gracious reception by a lov- 
ing, forgiving father. We left him starting — that was 
more than half the battle. Getting the consent of our 
minds is the first step, but unless we start, the consent 
amounts to no purpose. 

He is on his way home; it is a lonesome journey — an 
entirely new route. How different from the one he trav- 
eled only a short while ago — perhaps only a few years, 
when he went out from the old home, from loved ones 
and friends! That morning when he turned his eyes 
worldward, it was a bright day. What a grand pan- 
orama stood before him! Beautiful landscapes, tow- 
ering mountain peaks, with lovely cascades wreathed 
in perpetual blooming flowers; broad, sweeping plains, 
waving in golden grain, only awaiting the harvester; 
laughing streams and streamlets, along whose banks 
were ever-fragrant flowers. How bright the pros- 
pects ! How envied his start ! 

But things have wonderfully changed even in so 
short a time. Those tall peaks of hope are now reek- 



94 THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 

ing, belching volcanoes, pouring their red-hot lava of 
death and ruin upon him in his every step. Those 
waving fields of grain are now great wildernesses of 
thorns and thistles, while those laughing streams and 
streamlets are now become great stagnant ponds, teem- 
ing with the poisonous microcosi of blasted hopes and 
lost opportunities. Oh, how sad! Like Milton in 
Sampson Agonistes, when the messenger enters in hot 
haste to relate the catastrophe at Goza — 

"Which way go or whither fly 
The sight of this so horrid spectacle, 
Which erst my eyes beheld and 
Still behold; for dire imaginations 
Still pursue me." 

Yes, like a poor debauche, just coming out of a spell 
of delirium, in his semi-consciousness, the ghosts of 
hell continue to haunt him by flouncing into his face 
the scroll of a misspent and sinful past, so this young 
prodigal now tramped the lonesome path with a heavy 
heart and a smiting conscience. Nothing to eat; 
nothing to wear; no friends — alone he comes plodding 
home to his father. 

Young men, this ought to be a warning. It is the 
fruit of sin. Oh, stop now "before the evil days come 
nigh." 

AT HOME. 

Second. — The next place we find him is at home. 
He is standing on the same soil upon which he once 



THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 95 

played. Things here have changed, too, since he left. 
It is always true that things undergo seemingly a much 
more rapid change when we are away. 

A VISIT TO GRANDMOTHER'S HOME. 

I remember some years ago I visited my grand- 
mother after being away for several years. I had 
looked forward to the trip with great pleasure. The 
day arrived. I started from the city of Raleigh, N. 
C. It was a beautiful afternoon, and I had a swift 
horse. But the distance was so long. It seemed as if 
I never would get there. Finally, I was in the neigh- 
borhood, and ventured to ask the way, for there w r ere 
new houses and new roads and I was somewhat lost. 
Soon, however, I was there. Oh, what a change ! The 
house w r as so much dilapidated. The flowers all dead. 
Many of the beautiful white oaks in the large grove 
had been cut down. What a change! What a change! 
But I had not realized the change to its fullest extent 
until I saw dear old grandma. Her form all bent, her 
eyes dim, her voice trembling with the use of eighty- 
nine years. Surely, with the poet, I realized that 

"Life is full of changes — 
Too numerous to be told; 
Today we are babies, 
Tomorrow we are old." 

So w 7 e can imagine that our young man, as he stood 
and viewed the surroundings, saw many sad changes. 



96 THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 

The grounds, the trees, the home, the shrubbery, all 
changed. It does not look like home. And, besides, 
father has changed. His hair is gray, partially due to 
his boy's misconduct. Mother may be gone, and her 
vacant chair, empty slippers and absent voice strike ter- 
ror to his already sad heart. But with all, it is a glad 
day, for he is at home at last. All fears are gone. 
Father saw him and ran and met him. I don't know 
how he knew him. There might have been some- 
thing in his walk which so resembled the child of a few 
years ago, or perhaps, while he was a great way off, he 
began to cry, or to sing, and the father heard him and 
recognized him as his darling boy. 

"O, YOU RASCAL, YOU CAN'T FOOL YOUR OLD GRAND- 
MAMMY." 

There is something strange about the recognition 
of parents of their children. On that same trip when 
I went to visit my old grandmother I was convinced 
of this. I thought I would fool her. So, driving up 
to the gate, I said, "Hello!" The dogs began to bark. 
Again, "Hello!" said I. Just then, an old colored 
woman came to the door. Said I, "Does Mrs. Franks 
live here?" I thought I had completely changed my 
voice; but about that time I heard her dear old voice 
from within say, "Oh, you rascal, you can't fool your 
poor old grandmammy. Get down off that buggy!" 
and here she came. It didn't take me long before I 
was on the ground. "God bless you, Lennie, my dear 



THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 97 

boy!" and then I hardly know what happened. It was 
a foretaste of what I shall again realize when I drive 
up to her mansion in heaven and she comes to meet me. 
Oh, the father's glad heart that day when the boy 
came home! Boys, don't stay away from home too 
long. You will regret it some day. There are those 
there who love you; they would die for you; they are 
thinking about you all the time. Go home as often as 
you can consistent with your duties, and if you can't 
go as often as you would like, write to mother and 
father often. Cheer their dear old hearts by letting 
them know you still love and remember them fondly. 

"IT CAME FROM WHERE MOTHER SAT." 

Pardon me for giving you a little incident which was 
given me by my distinguished brother and friend, Dr. 
Wm. E. Hatcher, the successful pastor of Grace Street 
Church in Richmond, Va. I believe it was told him 
by the Rev. Dr. P. S. Hinson, of Chicago. Dr. Hinson 
was on his way to preach a commencement sermon at 
Wake Forest College, in North Carolina. At the 
town of Weldon, he found an old man sitting on a seat 
opposite him. He was a rough-looking specimen of a 
man. Evidently showed that he had lived a tough 
life. He seemed to be in great distress. "Can I be of 
any comfort to you, my friend?" said the Doctor. "No, 
no," said he, in a gruff manner. Several times he of- 
fered help, but he was refused, the old man saying, 
"Nobody cares for me." Dr. Hinson made his trip, 



98 THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 

and was returning. At a little station on the way, this 
same old man came aboard the cars. He was more 
troubled than before. The Doctor spoke to him 
again, and this time he seemed glad of an opportunity 
to talk. Said he, "Mister, I'm all broken up. Oh, I'm 
ruined. You see, I'm now old — I'm over seventy. 
When I was a boy, I ran away from home. I had a 
good mother. At first, I felt lonesome, and often 
thought about her, but as time passed I ceased to think 
of her. I never wrote to her. She did not know where 
I was. Some time ago I began to think of her. I felt 
like I must see her, but I did not expect she was living. 
The thought continued to stay with me. I resolved to 
come from my Western home back to North Carolina 
to see if I could find her. I went to the neighborhood 
and asked for her, but nobody knew anything about 
the family. Finally, I found an old man who remem- 
bered her, but could not tell me where she was buried. 
But I remembered the old church where she always 
carried me. I went over and found it. But it was 
gone to nothing. I went in. It had a brick floor. I 
found the place where she always sat. There were the 
bricks on which her feet rested. I got down there and 
cried, mister — cried like a child. Oh, to have called 
her back! And now, friend, you see this bundle? 
Well, I'm carrying it home. This brick you see is 
worn; her feet did that. I'm going to take it home, 
and when I die I want my head to rest on this brick." 
This was a sad story. We feel sorry for the old 
man as we read it. Young men, don't, I beg you, neg- 



THE MODERN PRODIGAL, 99 

lect these dear old souls. Serve them more and more 
as the days go by. How tender the thought of mother 
when she is gone! 

"They tell me of an angel's form 
That watched me while I slept; 
And of a soft and gentle hand 
That wiped the tears I wept. 

"And that same hand that held my own 
When I began to walk — 
The joy that sparkled in her eyes 
When first I tried to talk. 

"They say the mother's heart is pleased 
When infant charms expand — 
I wonder if she thinks of me, 
In that bright happy land. 

"I know she is in heaven now, 
That holy place of rest, 
For she was always good to me — 
The good alone are blest. 

"And I have got some little books, 
She taught me how to spell. 
The chiding or the kiss she gave, 
I still remember well. 

"And then she used to kneel with me, 
And taught me how to pray, 
And raise my little hands t'wards heaven 
And tell me what to say. 

"O! mother, mother, in my heart 
Thy image still shall be, 
And I will hope in heaven, at last, 
That I may meet with thee." 



100 THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 

A DEEPER MEANING. 

Third. — But, young men, this reception has a deeper 
and a richer meaning than the domestic relation. It 
does not simply mean to be applied to prodigality, in 
the various walks of life, but primarily it is intended to 
show a sinner's wandering from God the conditions of 
his return, and the graciousness of our Father's recep- 
tion. 

i. We have in the young man himself an unbeliever. 
Everyone of you failing to accept the Lord Jesus is a 
prodigal. 

2. We have in his fast life the nature of sin to lead us 
on and on to ruin, promising everything, and giving 
us nothing. 

3. We have in his want the utter insufficiency of a 
life of sinful pleasure to satisfy. 

4. In coming home and his reception, we have the 
nature of God to forgive. 

Oh, dear, unbelieving souls, come home to your 
loving, heavenly Father! Why longer stay in sin? 
Come home now! 

HOW COME? 

Do you ask how come? Why, like the prodigal, 
"arise;" start out; turn around. Jesus stands to re- 
ceive you. 

Some years ago I heard a celebrated revivalist ex- 
plain repentance and faith. I was standing in the 



THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 10. 

door, for I could not get a seat. All at once the 
preacher jumped off the platform and came down the 
aisle, saying, "I'm going to hell! Fm going to hell!" 
Said I to myself, I believe it. About that time, he 
wheeled on his heels and started back, saying, "I'm 
going to heaven! I'm going to heaven!" Then, step- 
ping on the platform, said he, "That's what I mean by 
repentance and faith." A while ago you were going 
in unbelief and sin ; you w r ere going to hell. You turn 
around, look to God, start toward Him — that's repent- 
ance and faith together. 

So I call you to turn around tonight; turn to God. 
There is salvation for everyone of you if you w r ill only 
accept it. 

Dr. Newman Hall relates this little story, which I 
give you in conclusion, praying God to bless it to your 
salvation : 

Some years ago a tall chimney had been completed, 
and the scaffolding was being moved. One man re- 
mained on top to superintend the process. A rope 
should have been left for him to descend by. His wife 
was at home washing, when her little boy burst in with, 
"Mother, mother, they've forgotten the rope, and he's 
going to throw himself down!" She paused; her lips 
moved in agony of prayer, and she rushed forth. A 
crowd was looking up to the poor man, who was mov- 
ing around the narrow cornice, terrified and bewil- 
dered; he seemed as if any moment he might fall or 
throw himself down in despair. His wife from below 



102 THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 

cried out: "Take off your stockings, unravel the wor- 
stead!" And he did so. "Now tie the end to a bit of 
mortar and lower gently." 

Down came the thread and a bit of mortar, swinging 
backwards and forwards. Lower and lower it de- 
scended, eagerly watched by many eyes; it was now 
within reach, and was gently seized by one of the 
crowd. They fastened some twine to the thread. 
"Now pull up." The man got hold of the twine. The 
rope was now fastened on. "Pull away again." He 
at length seized the rope and made it secure. There 
was a few moments of suspense, then amidst the shouts 
of the people he threw himself into the arms of his wife, 
sobbing, "Thous't saved me, Mary!" The worstead 
thread was not despised: it threw after it the twine, the 
rope, the rescue ! 

Ah, my friend, thou may'st be sunk very low down 
in sin and woe, but there is a thread of divine love that 
comes from the throne of heaven and touches even 
thee. Seize that thread. It may be small, but it is 
golden. Improve what you have, however little, and 
then more shall be given. That thin thread of love, if 
you will not neglect it, shall lift even you up to God and 
glory. "Who hath despised the day of small things?" 

The father put the best robe upon him, shoes upon 
his feet and made merry the entire household. So 
God, your Father, will draw you up in the robe of 
righteousness and make glad the City of God. Come 
home, young man! Come home! 



THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 103 

"Let not conscience make you linger, 
Nor of fitness fondly dream; 
All the fitness He requireth 
Is to feel your need of Him: 

This He gives you; 
'Tis the Spirit's rising beam. 

"Agonizing in the garden, 

Lo! your Maker prostrate lies; 

On the bloody tree behold Him; 

Hear Him cry before He dies, 

'It is finished;' 
Sinners, will not this suffice? 

"Lo! the incarnate God, ascended, 
Pleads the merit of His blood; 
Venture on Him, venture wholly; 
Let no other trust intrude: 

None but Jesus 
Can do helpless sinners good." 



THE YOUNG MAN WHO STAYED AT HOME; 

OR, 

WHINERS AND WHINING. 



"Now his elder brother was in the field, and as he came and drew nigtr 
to the house, he heard music and dancing."— Luke xv: 25. 

"But as soon as this thy son was come, which hath devoured thy living, 
with harlots, thou hast killed for him the fatted calf. 1 '— Luke xv: 30. 



CHAPTER VIII. 

THE YOUNG MAN WHO STAYED AT HOME; 

OR, 

WHINERS AND WHINING. 

The character before us now, while clearly related to 
our young man by the ties of nature, is not at all like 
him in conduct and disposition. Really, of the two, he 
is to be the most pitied. 

The primary intention in his case is to show us the 
groundlessness of the Jews who complained at the 
Master for receiving the Gentiles. But we are not 
dealing with the Jew here — there are none of them 
present. We are dealing with another class of whiners, 
however, who are as groundless in their complaints as 
ever the Jew was. 

The question then for us to consider is, how much 
related are we to this young man who stayed at home? 

I never did see any use in going around an issue. To 
me, the scriptures are full of meaning for all classes and 
conditions.- I heard a preacher once spend an hour in 
bitter denunciation of Judas Iscariot. I never heard 
such raking as old Judas received. He moved, he 
swayed, he stirred his audience. I really began to feel 
somewhat sorry for the old sinner. But in all that ser- 
mon he never said a word about the kinsman of Judas, 
who was following him, only worse, in that he was be- 



108 THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 

traying Christ and getting nothing for it. Let us, then, 
give this lesson tonight a chance to speak to us. 

WHINERS. 

He was a whiner, and we have them today in every 
department of life. 

In Business. — It is a very easy matter today to get 
together a great number — a regular congregation of 
them. They are usually very wise. They know how 
to run things — run everything, from a wheelbarrow to 
a steam engine. They are patriots and statesmen. 
They can manipulate the government with ease. That 
is what's the matter with our country today — an over- 
production of statesmen; and yet if the concentrated 
extract of the whole politically-aspiring country was 
obtained, I don't believe you could find one genuine 
statesman. There are at least a half-million men, and 
some few female men, who are in every way capaci- 
tated to run the government. These are our political 
whiners. Everything is wrong to the fellow who is 
out, and right to the fellow that's in. Go out in the 
country, in the rural districts, or on our streets, and 
hang around among the bummers, and you can find 
material enough amply qualified to run the govern- 
ment, to fill every office in the United States, from 
squire to President — that is, if you would listen at their 
talk. 

They are financiers, too — great financiers. They 
could straighten out Uncle Sam, pay off all his debts 



THE MODERN PRODIGAL, 109 

and have enough money to give every man, woman 
and child enough to last them a lifetime without strik- 
ing a lick — that is, to hear their talk. Silver! Silver! 
Gold! Gold! Sound money! Rotten money! Hard 
money! Soft money! Greenbacks! Bonds! Oh, hear 
them talk! How wise! How Solomon-like in their 
wisdom! And yet, as a matter of fact, these fellows, 
half of them, are under the homestead act, or have 
shammed off what they have to their wives, to keep 
from paying their own debts. And the majority of the 
other half are either tied up head and ears in boom lots 
or running head over heels in debt every day of their 
lives. But these are our politicians. They are our 
whiners, too. Sound finance with them is the finance 
which comes their way. An honest dollar with them 
is the dollar that brings the greatest per cent, into their 
own pocket, whether it's honest or not. I don't know 
how it is with you, but as for me I am tired hollowing 
myself hoarse and throwing up my hat when I hear one 
of these old homestead, protected, bankrupt office- 
seekers orate on "the great financial problems of the 
day." I want to hear a man talk who has managed his 
own money and paid his debts. When a man begins 
to whine around me, I try to find out how well capaci- 
tated he is to whine before I pay any attention to his 
whining. 

SOCIAL WHINERS. 

We find them in society. You know we have about 
as many circles now in society as we have letters in the 



110 THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 

alphabet; this little circle and that, everyone claiming 
to be the representation of "the best." And every little 
circle is mad because every other little circle will not 
recognize it. Hence, there is a constant state of war 
in the social world. I don't know why this is, for there 
has always been classes in the world. And, besides, I 
have always been too proud to associate with anybody 
who didn't want to associate with me. But they will 
whine. If they see another getting up a little higher 
than they are, they go out at once on a whining expe- 
dition. 

IN THE CHURCH. 

This class, I am sorry to say, is not entirely wanting 
even in the church. They are the objectors. They 
seem to have been born on a cloudy day and have never 
seen the sun. Spring anything which has for its ob- 
ject the glory of God, and you at once must stop to 
deal with "I'll object." They are like the naturalist 
who went crazy studying gnats. He thought he ate 
gnats, drank gnats, saw gnats, felt gnats, smelt gnats 
and heard gnats. It was gnats, gnats, gnats. One 
day as a friend was taking him out driving they came 
in sight of a huge mountain. "See!'' said the friend, 
"isn't that a pretty mountain?" The old fellow took 
out his field-glasses and looked, and then said, strain- 
ing his eyes at the same time, "I see no mountain, but 
a great pile of gnats." So with our friend in the 
church. He will look over a mountain of ^ood to find 



THE MODERN PRODIGAL. Ill 

a single gnat of objection. Then it is object, object, 
object. 

I have never known why the Lord lets such people 
get into the church, unless it is to try the patience of 
preachers, for if there is anything a preacher does mor- 
tally dread it is the fellow who lives in the "objective 
case." 

TREATING CORNS. 

Whiners are usually very sensitive. It is very hard 
to come anywhere near them without creating a great 
deal of trouble; and yet they get awful uneasy if you 
don't notice their whinings. They have corns — a great 
many of them, and they are usually pretty hard and 
horny, and, as a matter of course, they are easy to get 
to hurting, and when they hurt they hurt bad. They 
expect usually that the preacher is to play the part of 
chiropodist — a corn-doctor. Such, however, won't do. 
In the first place, everybody has a contempt for a pro- 
fessional corn-doctor; he is regarded in the profession 
as a quack. Again, that is not the way to treat a corn. 
The only way to treat a corn is by dissecting it out by 
the roots. And so the only way to treat one of these 
corny characters is to apply the scalpel of divine truth 
until it cuts out the roots of the disease, for in many re- 
spects it is a disease with which these poor unfortunates 
are afflicted. In love, then, and Christian kindness, 
cut hard and cut deep, and if the cure does not result, 
we will have an easy conscience, and that's worth a 
great deal. 



112 THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 



JEALOUSY. 



Usually, too, he is very jealous of his rights. This is 
peculiarly his own misfortune, as it does not affect any- 
one so much as himself; and the only thing such an un- 
fortunate one has to do to realize this is to continue 
harboring such a feeling, and it will come in the end. 
You have, perhaps, heard of the man who had a rival. 
When his rival died, he could not help rejoicing just a 
little. But friends built a monument over him, and 
then the poor old jealous soul wished he was dead. 
But since they might not put a monument over him, 
he thought the next best thing to do was to pull down 
the one over his rival; so he procured a spike one night 
and began to prize. Finally, he broke his back, and 
next morning there he was, with a broken back, but 
the monument was not hurt. So I have seen men and 
women with the spike of jealousy or envy prizing 
away at a towering monument of character, trying as 
best they could to destroy it. But in the end it only 
means their own destruction. Be careful, then, young 
men, in this matter; strive to do your best, and let the 
world do the same. 

STUBBORNNESS. 

Again, this class of people are usually blinded by 
stubbornness and what might be termed peevishness. 
This was one trouble with the young man who stayed 
at home. He was not only jealous and envious, but, 



THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 113 

with it all, he was stubborn. It often happens that men 
allow their stubbornness to blind their best interests. 
The New York Sun some time ago printed the follow- 
ing little story, which will illustrate this: 

One man was driving out of town with a load of 
bricks, and another was driving in with a load of hay. 
Both of them tried to get the best side of a mud hole, 
and the two teams came head to head and stopped. 

"You, there!" shouted the first driver, in loud and 
angry tones. 

"You, there, yourself," replied the second, equally 
loud. 

"Going to turn out?" 

"No!" 

"Nor I either!" 

"I'll stay here year first!" 

"And Til stay ten!" 

Both men proceeded to make themselves ostenta- 
tiously comfortable and indifferent. 

Such other travelers as came along took the other 
side of the road and passed them by. It had become a 
question of endurance. 

At the end of an hour the hay man broke the silence. 

"If tiler's one thing I hate, it's a human hog." 

"Then it's a wonder you haven't killed yourself be- 
fore now." 

Another hour passed, and this time the brick man 
spoke. 

"I'm going to sleep; I hope you won't disturb me." 



114 THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 

"Just what I was going to ask of you," said the other 
man, from his load of hay. 

Both pretended to go to sleep, but towards night the 
hay man suddenly broke out: 

"Say, you're a mighty mean man!" 

"The same of you." 

"Where are you going with those bricks?" 

"Four miles out, to John Dayton. 

"Where is your hay going?" 

"To Stiner's brick-yard." 

"Say, man, Pm John Dayton myself, and. I've traded 
this hay for brick." 

"Well, I'm young Stiner, and I am driving the first 
load out." 

"What fools we are! Here, take all the road!" 

"No, no; let me turn out." 

"I'll turn." 

"No, let me." 

And in their eagerness to do the right thing, the load 
of hay was upset and a wheel taken off the brick wagon. 

This has practically been the experience of many — 
perhaps some of us. Let us watch this, — such a com- 
mon weakness. 

THE MODERN ZIPHITES. 

Finally, this class are generally great critics; they 
are very far-sighted; can usually read with accuracy 
the flaws in other men's characters, but fail absolutely 
in seeing their own. And more than otherwise, they 
will feel it their special missions to keep the community 



THE MODERN PRODIGAL. 115 

informed about those things. They are somewhat like 
the Ziphites in opening up the old sores between Saul 
and David. They are never so happy as when they 
are feasting like the dogs around Lazarus, upon a dish 
of scabs pulled from the character of their neighbors. 
Oh, beware of such characters as these! They are as 
dangerous as a serpent. I'd be ashamed to have no 
higher mission in life than a sore-licker or a scab-eater. 
There is something better to live for than this. Let us 
see if we cannot cultivate the habit of telling all the 
good we know about a man before we tell the bad. 

IN CONCLUSION. 

Now, young men, in concluding this series of practi- 
cal talks tonight, let me say that they have been deliv- 
ered under very favorable circumstances. You have 
come in great numbers. I have rejoiced to talk with 
you and to you in this way. I want to thank you per- 
sonally for your presence. Many kind expressions 
have come to me from you and from your parents. I 
trust that you have received some suggestions which 
will be helpful to you. And if in heaven I shall be re- 
warded by their fruits, as I have been here in their de- 
livery by your presence and your expressions, I shall 
be amply satisfied. May the richest blessings of 
heaven rest upon the young men of our city and the 
world is the prayer of one who loves you and would 
help you. And as a closing thought I would leave with 
you Duffield's beautiful poem: 



116 THE MODERN PRODIGAL, 

"Stand up! — stand up for Jesus! 

Ye soldiers of the cross; 
Lift high His royal banner, 

It must not suffer loss: 
From victory unto victory 

His army shall be led, 
Till every foe is vanquished, 

And Christ is Lord indeed. 

"Stand up! — stand up for Jesus! 

Stand in His strength alone; 
The arm of flesh will fail you; — 

Ye dare not trust your own: 
Put on the gospel armor, 

And. watching unto prayer, 
Where duty calls, or danger, 

Be never wanting there. 

"Stand up! — stand up for Jesus! 

The strife will not be long; 
This day the noise of battle, 

The next the victor's song: 
To him that overcometh, 

A crown of life shall be; 
He with the King of glory 

Shall reign eternally." 



OCT 27.1899 



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